Snowblind [FF]...Complete

[Jonesybites]

Warning: Although most of the content has been edited for this site, there are violent acts of graphic nature in this chapter.

You can view the unedited version at the following link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5380395/34/Snowblind

Chapter 34: And There Will Be Blood

I'm never relaxed
even when I say I am
I'm always on the alert
looking for the problem

I am all of these things
I am this and more
you don't scare me at all

It’s hell above the water


Curve

Hell Above The Water


The day withered by as the frozen lake near Plantire fell into the shadow of the overcast sky. Clouds could be seen from the west, gathering together in the distance as the lookout from the watchtower carefully peered towards the inevitable snowstorm coming their way.

Standing in the tower, watching over the snow covered plains, Gil, a Stranded henchman, stood and waited for a sign, anything that may reveal a potential infiltration, but the only thing that they could see festering was the dark horizon. It has been five hours and no sign of anyone coming to reclaim the Feral they took prisoner earlier that morning.

He knew that Morose was borderline anxious, waiting patiently for Sigma squad to come and take back what was theirs, now in his possession, and he relished in it. But Gil, on the other hand, was skeptical. He knew that the Feral allowed herself to be captured to aid in Sigma's escape, hell, they must be near the Block by now; they have to if they are to survive this oncoming storm, especially during nightfall. The sun was still hanging above the mountains in the mid evening afterglow through the overcast sky. It normally won't be dark for another four hours, but the storm may hasten the darkness.

Gil could suddenly hear the heavy footsteps of Gear boots, marching up the stairs into the lookout tower. He turned around to find Hogaus, a stocky caucasian man with short blonde hair, spiked up from the dry cold air, approaching him.

"Morose wants the word," Hogaus snorted as he glared at Gil with his pale eyes, "…he demands an update."

Gil didn't think to question Hogaus since the guy dwarfed him with his height and husky build. He knew that Hogaus was a man of few words with a short temper, but his allegiance with Morose was inseparable. Along with the other "Gears," Hogaus had the Gear armor strapped on, somewhat customized to accommodate his build. His massive arms hung out freely, using "arm socks," to protect them from the cold, while his fatigues were patched in some places from previous encounters.

Gil started to make his way around the large man, slowly going down the steps while Hogaus stayed in the lookout tower. Getting to the bottom of the stairs, Gil pulled up his shotgun over his shoulder as he walked through the crowd of people gathering as they were quickly going through their routines, making preparations.

Gil looked out and noticed Morose standing near the barracks entrance, looking out at the commotion while standing back, waiting for Gil to make his way over to him.

"Anything?" Morose demanded.

"N…nothing, as of yet. We haven't seen anything or anyone coming near the camp."

"…and Pellin's scouting party?"

"They haven't returned yet. No flares, no smoke signal, nothing."

Gil could tell that Morose was getting irritated. Without warning, Morose, turned around and opened the door into the factory office, storming in as Gil follows behind Morose, going down a hallway into a closed room, where Morose shoved the door open.

Gil peered in to see the Feral still strapped to her chair, slumped and shaken from Morose's sudden entrance. Raven lifts her head in horror as Morose quickly grabs her chair, turning it around while gripping her arms as he pulls her in, directly into his face.

"Alright…where did you tell them to go?" Morose sneered, leaving Raven speechless from his sudden change in demeanor. His bright eyes pierced into hers, as if he already knew the answer from just looking into them. His head tilted slightly as Raven sat frozen in her seat, speechless.

The expression in his face turned sour as his patience with her was wearing thin. Raven has been a thorn in his side for too long and with her now in his possession, he intended to make the most of her.

Raven turned her glare away from his face, knowing that it would inferiorate him, hoping that he would kill her like he did the others when they tested his patience. But Morose found her too valuable to just throw away to the side, so he decided to move on to the next best thing he could use to his advantage.

He stood up as he glared at her looking away from him, somewhat amused at her defiance, but time was pressing for him as he finally walked around her, pulling out her "bowie" knife that he had confiscated after her capture. Raven froze as she closed her eyes, waiting for him to slit her throat, letting the blood spill from her body, releasing her soul from this cold, bitter world that abandoned her to the darkest of fates, but death was not present, nor did death make an entrance as Morose grabbed her hands from behind the chair to cut her bonds, releasing her aching wrists from the ziptie that was strangling her joints.

As soon as her arms were released, a great sense of relief swelled in her shoulders as she nearly topples over from the tension from being tied up. Morose catches her by her arm before she hits the ground, slowly letting her go down to the ground as he leans over and cuts the ziptie wrapped around her boot and the leg of the chair.

"Wait…what the hell, you're just going to let her go?" Gil protested before Morose stood up, putting away the knife, giving Gil a sour glare.

"Shut up, Gil…she's not going too far on a broken ankle," he sneered as he quickly pulled her up and threw her over his shoulder.

The whole thing startled Raven, not realizing how strong Morose was until he whipped her over his shoulder and walked out of the room. Her heart rate shot up as her stomach turned into knots and contortions she never experienced before, and it scared her. Morose turned to face Gil,

"Get the boys over here…we're going to have a little soap opera…" Morose ordered, "…and you be sure to bring the prodigal daughter as well."

********

Morose's men gathered near the building entrance as they waited for others to make the gathering. Hogaus was the last to join them as he dragged their Feral informant to the crowd, making sure she was standing to the front as they waited for Morose to join them.

The door opened as Morose carefully dragged Raven outside of the building in the blistering cold. He held on to Raven tightly by her arm, bracing her from a sight she never thought to ever see as she peered out into group of Stranded and disgruntled Gears, only to find among the crowd a familiar face, one that she has known before the destruction of her clan. Raven glared at the Feral informant as Raven's eyes widened, putting all the pieces together that she has gathered for the past three days. The Feral sunk back while Hogaus kept her in place, making sure she didn't leave as he pushed her forward into the menagerie.

The Feral informant was hesitant, feeling Raven's cold, blue eyes meet hers, a deep hazel that was sunken in from the warpaint. Her dirty blonde hair was course from the wind, pushing her long strands to the front of her petrified face. The fury swelled into Raven like hives, itching from the malice pulsing in her brain, while the Feral before her, glared in fear as Raven summoned her last bit of strength to yank herself from Morose's grip and dashes over to the Feral girl. It wasn't long before Raven struck the other Feral, knocking her sideways as Raven fell with her, stumbling over her broken ankle, but her anger rerouted the pain form her leg as she landed on the girl and started to bludgeon her with her tight fists.

Morose stood back and watched the drama unfold, chuckling as Raven screamed at the girl, beating her repeatedly, slurring in a sequence of profanities in the Feral language as she shouted at the top of her lungs.

"YOU TREACHEROUS B****…DAMN YOU, HAGAR…" Raven snarled while Hagar tried to wear through Raven's outburst as best as she could, "…YOU SET US UP…WHY?"

By now, Hagar was bleeding profusely from the nose, attempting to shield her face from Raven's clinched fists, bashing in fury. The other Stranded watched in awe and shock while some of the Gears laughed at the girl fight, exchanging wagers amongst themselves.

"WHY…TELL ME WHY, DAMNIT!" Raven continued to scream at the top of her lungs.

Morose looked over to his men, gesturing to them to break it up. Hogaus and Sanders moved quickly as they grabbed Raven's flailing arms, pulling her off of Hagar, dragging the furious Raven away from their skirmish. Struggling against the two men, she continued to scream in the Feral language, squirming and kicking with her good leg.


"Damn Mills," Sanders blurted out as he tries to keep Raven in his grasp, but her thrashing was loosening his grip as he attempts to tighten his hold. Morose pulls out his Snub pistol and shoots it in the air. The shot rings out, silencing everyone around, including Raven, startling her tantrum.

Hagar was still on the ground bleeding and whimpering from the assault, looking up at Morose as he glared at her, giving her a sour look.

"Well, I guess you had it coming," he sneered and then turned his attention to Raven, "…and as for you, let's just say this whole set up has been nothing more than a disappointment…"

"I told you, asshole…they're not coming, so why don't you do yourself a favor and just kill me now," Raven snapped as she tensed her arms under the Gears' hold. Morose was for the most part, poised, tilting his head as he knelt down in front of Raven.

"This one has spunk," Morose scoffed while Hogaus and Sanders snickered, "…I would have expected such charisma from a Harpie...not from a remnant of Anetha," he derides, glaring at her with same intimidating look. Raven slumped back trying to keep a distance between her and Morose, but it didn't make her any less nervous.

Morose looked down for a moment, rummaging through the denizens of his head as his subliminal tendencies would peer through the darkness with glowing eyes, like a lion, stalking it's prey. He looked back up as he grabbed Raven by her chin, making sure she was looking directly at him as he muttered softly,

"Would you like to know what really happened to your clan?"

The question yanked her like a leash on a tight collar, leaving her speechless as she gasped for air. Morose peered into her, as her eyes met with his, while the words continued to tighten her chest,

"…should I tell you, before your…conversion?"

"Don't bother…there's nothing you can say that will conform me to your sick sport," Raven scoffed, hoping that it would end his little mind game, but it had only just begun.

Morose let out a light chuckle, amused at Raven's insolence while catching himself becoming fascinated with her resilience, killing her would be such a waste.

"Your courage is commendable, Feral, but your ignorance will betray you…just as it betrayed your clan," Morose continued as Raven's eyes widened from the revelation, "…they made the mistake of joining forces with the COG…the same one's who exploited the Indie settlements, subjecting their citizens to inhumane experiments…they did the same to the Feral clans that inhabited the area."

"What…" Raven choked as the noose started to tighten even more.

"That's right girl…" Morose continued, pushing the envelope even further as he sees her tensing up, "…the COG was desperate, trying to expand their military resources…their scientists were bold enough to use human components to test the mutagenic properties of Imulsion...but these scientists claimed they needed live, human DNA to get the results they needed, so they used those who were disposable. They knew that no one would question their disappearance, which is why they used the Indies and the Feral."

"You lie..." Raven sneered as her face scowled, "…the clans would have known about it!"

Morose's eyes suddenly burned into fury as he tightened his grip on her chin, pulling her forward while Hogaus and Sanders held onto her arms,

"I know that I am a man of many things, but I am not a liar," he hissed as his jaw clenched, watching Raven grimace in his grip, "…do not call me that, again."

He suddenly released his hold on her chin as she gasped from the pain. He leaned back, watching her compose herself again as he spoke,

"…but you are right…some of the clans did know about it...but Tamar had them silenced, and has since then waited for vengeance."

Raven shook her head, finding the strength to snap back,"…and why would she do that?"

Hagar carefully picked herself up as she wiped the blood from her mouth and nose. She stood in between action and hesitation, knowing full well the conversation being carried between Morose and Raven. As Hagar stood on her two feet again, Raven turned her gaze to Hagar, letting the malice that festered in Raven's brain, stir the water as the ripples clouded rationality.

"Why…" Raven scoffed, snapping at Hagar, "…why did you betray us?"

Morose grabbed Raven by her chin again, directing her gaze back to him,

"It was your clan and the neighboring clans among you that betrayed the Feral," Morose sneered, "…your reverend mother, Poroux wanted to reestablish ties with the COG."

"She did it so we could survive…" Raven answered back, "…we were losing our lands to the Locusts!"

"NO…" Morose barked back as Raven jumped from the sudden change in his voice, "…you were losing the land to the COG. They were taking anyone and everyone to amass their armies, strengthen their power…they conquered and then they destroyed, settlement after settlement with their confiscated weapon of mass destruction! I've seen it…I was there."

His eyes where burning with rage, his brow scowling as he peered into Raven, closing in.

"I watched as they destroyed my home, my land, and my men, all who were in the crossfire, trying to hold the Locusts back so the citizen's could get to Jacinto. They...we, were branded, expendable. I watched from a distance as they were burned, alive…" Morose mouth quivered in disgust as the words seethed from his lips, "…Chairman Prescott broke the fundamental law of the Octus Canon…to protect the citizens of the COG alliance. Instead, they were sacrifices to the alter for the sake of protecting humanity…our f***ing humanity…a sick joke that the COG uses to unite the world for their victory over the Locusts."

Raven just sat there, trembling in Morose' presence as he ranted some more,

"After they unlocked the Hammer's key components, they unleashed it's power over the face of Sera to destroy the Locusts, but they set it off too early, before we could relocate the citizens back to Jacinto…they knew this, but they did it anyway, because we were f***ing expendable for their welfare...few of us managed to survive the onslaught, and since then, we vowed to serve justice to the coward, Prescott and the others whom were responsible...starting with that old f***, Hoffman."

Raven's gaze fell into Morose' trap, listening attentively as he continued,

"Paroux knew this...she knew what they have done...even you knew this, how they destroyed our lands and the people that were still in them…and now, you have allied yourselves with the "pigs," the true enemies of the Coalition, Chairman Prescott and his dogs of war. They will be held accountable for their crimes…"

"And you justify this by killing the innocent?" Raven snapped back, "...you killed Stranded for your own amusement, don't bulls*** me...and you killed the Gears...and then turned it all around and blamed it all on the Feral, you son of a b****!"

"The Gears were given a choice before I executed them…and they chose the side of the "pigs." And as for the Stranded, well…" Morose looked deeply into Raven's scorned eyes, "they're like dogs. Some are obedient, and can be trained...others are just a hindrance and must be removed…the Feral, on the other hand…"

The grip that Morose had on her gaze quickly tightened, "…they were becoming a threat...they have always been a threat, so Tamar did what was necessary…the Harpies scouts led us to their camp,"

Raven started to tremble as the words seeped from Morose's mouth,

"…and we ambushed them…"

You unimaginable bastard.

"…and we destroyed all that we could find…and as I said before," he said as he flashed a condescending grin, "…they are much more pleasurable when they are forced."

Without warning, Raven whipped her head to the side and sinks her teeth into Sanders leg.

"Ah, F***," Sanders bellowed as he loosens his grip on her wrist, allowing Raven to pull out from his hold so she could take a swipe at Morose. Realizing what she was trying to do, Morose quickly countered Raven, suddenly grabbing her wrist and drops her to the ground while holding her facedown. With Hogaus still clutching her other arm, Raven was for the most part, immobilized.

Sanders continued to growl, clutching the inside of his thigh where Raven bit him.

"Gah…that f***ing c*nt, bit me," he protested as Morose and Hogaus started to laugh. Sanders finally looked up from clutching his leg as he blasts out,

"Smack that b****, Mills," Sanders sneered as Morose and Hogaus refrained from laughing any further. Hogaus still held on to Raven, his hand clenching her arm tightly to keep her from turning around.

Gil for the most part stood behind the commotion, not wanting to take any delight in Morose's "entertainment." He knew Morose to be brutal, especially with Gear prisoners. He couldn't imagine what Morose would intend for their captive Feral, especially if Sigma would never come back for her.

Morose pulls out his pistol, loading it up while Hagar watched in fear, her eyes widening. Morose grabs Raven by her armor, pulling her up. With malice still fresh in her head, she thrashes at Morose, getting a shot in as her palm mashes into his face, but the hit didn't faze Morose at all, as he just turned and glared at her. Blood was seeping from his mouth as Raven watched in horror, suddenly realizing his true intentions as he smirked,

"I hope there's more where that came from," he sneered. Without warning, he slaps her across the face, coercing a response from Raven as she fell to the ground, whimpering from the stinging sweltering the side of her cheek from the contact. The ritual was enticing to him as he leans down and pulls Raven back on her feet, hoping that she would fight back some more. He proceeds to drag her back to the quarters when Hagar suddenly blurts out,

"NO…STOP…do not kill her," Hagar yelled out. Morose turned and looked at her, stopping in his tracks as the vicinity became still around them.

"I don't intend to kill her," Morose sneered as he continued to drag Raven over to the door before Hagar called out again.

"Tamar's Pandora must be spared and unspoiled…" Hagar finally revealed as Morose stopped in his tracks. His demeanor shifted into a state of astonishment as he turned to Raven with her arm still in his grip while he pulled her up and snatches her chin with his hand, looking at her carefully.

"Well well…isn't that just f***ing dandy…" he mused as he looks her over, admiring his prize, "…so this is Tamar's lost daughter...you're more profitable than I have ever imagined"

Raven trembled in his brace, breathing heavily as the palpitations in her heart skipped several beats from the anxiety. Raven's eyes widened to the news of her true identity, something she never knew and was not willing to accept as her mind shifted in many moods, from confusion, to despair, intertwined with betrayal. Tamar is not my mother…she is a traitor! A sudden flux of questions hit her brain all at once, pushing her into anguish…everything that I thought I knew, everything that I was told was a ****ing lie! NO…it's not true!

And then the revelation hit her, was that why the Harpies didn't kill us? It was too much to take in. Raven began to shut down and Morose could see it. His head tilted, peering into her pale eyes, looking through the glass lens and seeing the truth in her expression. He moved closer towards her frozen face,

"You didn't know about this, did you…" he commented, looking at her as his brow hung heavily over his sharp blue eyes, "…you have been ignorant all along. They never told you what really happened to your parents, did they…Eloise McNight..."

How does he know my name, Raven pondered. Morose grinned, amused that he was dissecting her from the inside out. The sound of her name, flowing from his lips caused a rift from reality as her mind went into a daze. Just shoot me now…get it over with! There's nothing left for me here now.

Morose could tell that Raven's demeanor slumped as the tension in her body laxed. She stopped struggling against him, submitting to whatever fate awaited her, and it started to irritate him.

"No…no…you're giving up way too easily," he sneered as he yanks her and throws Raven up over his shoulder,

"C'mon on, girl," Morose said as he made his way back into the building while Sanders and Gil followed them from behind. He turned over his shoulder as he yelled out to Hogaus,

"…and bring that Feral b**** as well."

Part 2 continued on next post...

[Jonesybites]

Part 2 of Chapter 34...

Hogaus quickly grabbed Hagar, pulling her away from the group by her arm as she wiped the blood from her nose. Raven watched from behind and noticed that Hagar wasn't fighting back, she didn't even struggle against Hogaus' tight grip as he yanked her towards the door, while the two followed them.

Morose walked down the hallway until he reached towards a door that was already open, and walks in with Gil and Sanders close behind. Morose stormed into what appeared to be a living quarters with weapons and other armaments scattered on metal shelves along the wall and a small bathroom across from the entry door. Hogaus soon joined them with Hagar still tucked in is grip.

"Put her there, Hogs," Morose ordered as Hoguas nodded, picking up Hagar, literally by her waist and threw her on a makeshift bed. Morose pulled out a chair and plopped Raven on it, holding her back by her shoulders. Raven glanced at Gil and Sanders, wondering what was going on, but the grave expression in Gil's face was unsettling as Raven turned to see Hogaus glaring at her, while holding Hagar down with his massive arms.

"We're going to try this again," Morose sneered as he gave Hogaus a nod.

The anticipation in the room took a turn as Hogaus pulled out his hunting knife, sending shivers down Raven's spine, oh God, there going to gut her…granted she should die for her betrayal, but not like this!

Raven started to squirm,

"No, this is not necessary…if it's me you want then leave her be!" Raven snorted. Shortly after her outburst, she felt a hand grabbing the bottom of her chin and pulling her head up so that her gaze was met with Hogaus'.

"I don't you think you understand what I'm getting at, girl," Morose scoffed, leaning over to her ear, so close that she could hear him breathing, slow and calm, "...you're either going to give me some COG intel…or you can sit back and watch this."

Raven didn't answer as she flashed a scowl look on her face. After all that she had been through for the past week, she be damned if she was going to put Sigma in danger, much less what was left of her decimated clan, still finding refuge at Fort Block. Morose' patience finally gave out as he looked up at Hogaus,

"Go ahead…let the show begin."

Raven's heart sunk into her stomach, as she couldn't help but to watch Hogaus cut unto Hagar's armor, ripping through the tough leather straps that held her armor in place. He couldn't cut through the Reaver hide so he loosened the straps and pulled off her armor once the bonds were severed.

Raven struggled to watch as she could see Hagar's face was expressionless. She had no idea what was going on in Hagar's mind, but she couldn't stand that fact that she didn't fight back.

"Fight back, damnit, what's the matter with you?" Raven barked out in the Feral tongue, until Morose let out a chuckle. The outburst didn't phase Hogaus at all as he continued to remove Hagar's armor until he reached her ceremonial garb, made of a fine silk.

Hogaus quickly turned Hagar over onto her stomach, forcing her head down with his massive hand, her hair clinched around his fingers as he straddle himself behind her while pulling up her hips. He cut through the cloth and ripped it in half, exposing Hagar's bare backside as Hogaus gently ran his hand down her exposed back. It was then that Raven realized what they were going to do to her, Oh, God, no.

"No, damnit, leave her alone you bastards," she barked, squirming in Morose' hold.

"Quiet you...you're spoiling the mood," Hogaus sneered.

Raven tried to turn her head away from the ghastly sight, but Morose grabbed her chin and moved it in place,

"You're not going to get out of it that easily…" Morose serenely whispered in her ear, "…watch and learn, girl…you might like it!"

Raven struggled against his grip, feeling the pain in her ankle again. She yelped from the sudden throb that shot into her leg, pulsing between her core and her ankle in rhythmic thrusts. She looked down and quickly noticed that Morose was holding her broken leg in place with his own, pressing it against the leg of the chair as his force was agitating it every time she squirmed.

"Don't make me have to break your other one, Eloise…" he sneered into her ear as he watched the scene take place, forcing Raven to watch, violating the sanctity of her mind, poisoning it with the image that was forced upon her. He knew that she would never forget it, and that it will always transcend into her memory, forever burning abhorrence that will never cease.

The whole thing was making her sick to her stomach, trembling under Morose's tight grip. Raven couldn't stand it anymore and decides to shut her eyes. Morose noticed what she was trying to do as he tightened his grip around her neck.

"No, no…open your eyes, now," Morose demanded, but Raven ignored him as he shook her head. Noticing that she was being defiant, he pulled her up from the chair as she yelped in pain from standing on her leg.

"So you wanna play this game now, huh…" he scoffed as his tone turned into gratification, "...good, cause I can't wait."

He turns her around as he starts to drag her towards the bathroom, when someone ran up to the door.

"The search party is back," a Stranded started until he noticed the disturbing scene, cutting him off short as the shock started to hit him. Morose let out a growl as he turned his glance back to Hogaus,

"We need to move, now!" he growled as he dragged Raven back over his shoulder and marches over to the door where the Stranded was standing there, dumbfounded. Morose pulled him off to the side as Gil joined them,

"How many?" Morose demanded.

"Just three…they said that they we're ambushed…" the Stranded quivered as Morose's demeanor starts to get agitated.

"F***…Hogs, hurry it up!" Morose yelled as he stormed towards the door that lead outside.

Morose kicked the door open as he marched out with Gil following close behind, noticing that Raven was in a daze, weary and fatigued, both physically and mentally. He wasn't quite sure how far Morose intended to peel into her mind, but he knew that Morose was capable of alot of things, she was lucky this time.

The area was in chaos with everyone inside the fort, quickly running to their posts as the Stranded gathered their weapons while the soldiers took their places, readying the horses from the stables nearby.

Morose dropped Raven onto the ground as he noticed his scouting team was galloping across the crowd, splitting off in different directions. Raven was cringing on the ground, carefully sitting up to look at the commotion going on around them, confused by the sudden crisis while Morose started to walk through the array of men as he approached one of the soldiers nearby,

"Jenkins, what happened…what did Pellin say?"

"He said they were ambushed…four of them, coming this way" Jenkins responded.

"Four?" Morose glared at him, his eyes intense as he looked up to see one of the rider's slow his horse down, his face covered by the hood and scarf while his coat was wrapped tightly, with his Lancer strung to his back. Morose peered towards his scout, trying to make out his eyes through the goggles.

Without warning, Morose turned around as he felt a warm breeze splash upon his face, followed by the sound of a streaking whistle, from a faint gunshot that rang out from a distance. His eyes stung as tears filled them, pushing the blood that splattered on his face as the Gear that was right next to him leaned and slumped against him.

"Jenkins…JENKINS, F***," Morose tired to wake the fallen soldier while having difficulty seeing with the blood still obstructing his vision, not realizing that part of Jenkins head was scattered across the snow, trampled ground.

It was then that a voice was heard over the crowd,

"SNIPER…GET UP TO THE TOWERS, QUICK…SHOOT THAT SON OF A B**** DOWN."

Morose dropped the lifeless Jenkins as he quickly wiped the blood from his eyes, pushing the remnants with his tears while wiping his cheeks from the warm crimson that saturated his face. He turned around to where he dropped Raven, but she wasn't anywhere in sight.

"F***…" Morose blurted out as he scanned the vicinity, she couldn't have gotten too far on that ankle.

Hogaus finally made it out of the building while Sanders marched up to Morose and pulled him to the side,

"Get into cover…s***, they f***ed up Jenkins," Sanders observed.

"Find that Feral…she's around here somewhere," Morose ordered. The crowd moved frantically as another whistle breezed across Plantire. Morose turned to Hoguas as he watched in alarm while his head thrusts backwards, followed by a crimson mist. Morose watched as Hoguas' eyes rolled into the back of what was left of his partial head, while his massive body slumped to the ground.

"HOGS…f***," Morose roared. He turned around as Sanders ran up to him,

"WE NEED TO FIND COVER, DAMNIT!"

The Stranded moved recklessly, making their way to the walls of Plantire while the snipers in the watch towers search frantically for the sniper taking shots at them. Raven managed to drag herself near a shed, where she wedged herself between the building and carport filled with canisters and propane tanks. She continued to pull herself by her arms while pushing with her good leg, but it was starting to get fatigued from the extra work of moving her around without the other. Damnit...I need a gun, she suddenly realized as she noticed a Gear scout met his gaze with hers as he dismounted his horse. Oh no...

Scanning quickly in her immediate area, she finds a flathead screwdriver, s***, it's better than nothing. The Gear scout, Pellin moved towards her direction with Lancer in hand, damnit...there's no way, Raven grumbled to herself. As he moves in she raises the screwdriver in her hand, getting ready to stab him with it as Pellin knelt down and grabbed her hand, twisting her arm behind her back and forces her down. He quickly looks around while everyone else was trying to take cover from the assault as another shot rings out, followed by another Stranded toppling over with half his head missing.

Raven growled as tears swelled in her eyes until she heard a familiar voice calling to her,

"Damnit, Rav...hold still," he said, turning her around as she looked at the Gear in confusion while he pulls her close, "...grab onto me, quick!"

Without question or response, she wraps her arms around the Gears' covered head. Clinging onto him, he straps her body to his torso with a leather harness, gathering her legs into a leather belt, pulling her up off of the ground, freeing his hands as he gathers his Lancer. Standing back up, the harness holds her close to him, while still clinging to his overcoat, keeping her head down and nuzzled against his torso, she could feel the palpitations in his chest as he moved quickly through the crowd.

"TAKE OUT THAT F***ING, SNIPER," Morose yelled as he and Sanders stormed over to one of the towers. Suddenly, the roar of an engine could be heard, roaming in the middle of the chaos as an APC suddenly broke into the commotion that was festering in the vicinity.

"I didn't order anyone to start up S***piece," Morose growled. As Sanders turned around, a sudden crash was audible as the Dill plunges through the rows of portable bathrooms that were stacked in the middle of the camp. Porta potties were strewn in all directions as their contents spilled all over the snow. The crowd scattered to avoid the APC, and an array of sewage, scattered across the snow, sloshed ground.

Suddenly, gunshots ring out as the sound of rapid-fire streams through the crowd. Everyone in audible range ducks, as the soldiers quickly take evasive, dropping to the ground while trying to make out their target.

Sanders and Morose hit the ground as they pull out their weapons.

"They're here…they're inside our base," Morose snorted as he stood back up, looking for the infiltrators. The Dill turns around and slides into a stop, while the hatch opens up as a Gear inside opens fire from the cabin.

"Yea…WHOO…come get some of this, b****es," a voice rang out through the racket of the gunfight, clipping the first few Stranded in sight.

Morose looked over and saw his scout, Pellin, running through the crowd, and watches closely as Pellin pulls out a knife, swings around another one of his men and grabs the unsuspecting soldier by the neck, cutting across the side of his throat. The soldier gags, clutching his neck in vain as the blood spills from his opened jugular.

Burning in fury, Morose glares at his scout, realizing it wasn't Pellin. The stranger in Pellin's garb glared back, carrying someone strapped across his chest in a sling that was hung around his neck as he quickly took cover behind another portable building.

Between the frantic audio slurs and the motions of pandemonium, Morose's senses tune out everything around him, keeping his focus on the scout as the stranger stood his back up against the metal wall with his Lancer on his side, hung over his shoulder by a strap. Freeing his other hand, he reaches up to pull the scarf down from his head, revealing his scruffy, blonde hair, and then moved his goggles onto his forehead. In a brief moment, Morose' eyes met with Baird's, in a sudden glimpse of exchange as the two men peered at one another, but just as Baird stood slightly out and turned to reveal a small framed body of his Feral prisoner, strapped in his brace, he lifts his other hand and extends his middle finger for Morose to see.

"F***…HE'S GOT OUR PRISONER," Morose barked, but before he could take action, an explosion near the propane tanks shoots across the field as debris and snow scatter across the vicinity, separating Morose and his men from the infiltrators. A fire blazes between them while Morose rises from the snow, covered ground, peering through the smoke, watching Baird get up from his cover. Without warning, Baird turned and started to fire his Lancer in Morose's direction. Morose took cover behind a parked car while the shots ricochet across the metal, shooting out the glass and a side mirror.

"Over there," Morose roared, gesturing to his men as they gathered around him, "they have S***piece…take out the Dill, take out the Dill."

Four of his soldiers returned fire towards the Dill as Baird managed to take refuge inside the hull, closing the door behind him.

S***," Sanders blurted out as he jumps out from his position, running around the blaze and towards the Dill, raising his Lancer while attempting to take out it's tires.

The APC jerks backwards as the driver, apparently was shifting the gears into reverse while the Dill runs into a shed, tipping the building over while the roof broke off, sliding across the icy ground. A rumble could be heard as the Dill takes an abrupt jump forward and starts to drive off.

"F***…" Sanders yells out as he tries to gesture to the Stranded near the front gate, "…CLOSE THE F***ING GATE!"

Before the men near the gate could respond, the Dill rams through several small, makeshift buildings before exiting through the entryway, taking out part of the chain, link fence, with it as it drove out of Plantire and down the road ahead. The men watch in vain as their Dill drives off down the road, towards Port Farrall.

********

The snow began to pick up, dropping heavily as the afterglow of the sun behind the overcast sky was dimming. A breeze grazes the landscape as a taste of the things to come for the evening was becoming evident. It was going to be a very bitter, cold night.

Sven walked through the knee-deep snow, carrying Delilah as she hung onto him, keeping her head buried under his scruffy chin. Pulling his legs up and over the snow, he finally made it to the road.

He looked out in the distance as the sounds of a vehicle could be heard. Peering through the heavy snow that was falling from the sky, he pulled out his last flare, lighting it up and throws it out on the road, I don't know how they are going to stay on the road in this weather.

The flare glistened brightly, sending waves of iridescent light around the falling snow nearby. The ice particles in each flake flowed from the light illuminating from the flare, giving off a brilliance that Sven have never seen before. Sure he's seen snow glowing from the porch light at his parent's house, but the glistening light radiating from the snow was dazzling.

The only thing that turned him from the sight was the sound of a small voice, muttering from the little girl nestled against him.

"Mr. Gear…" Delilah's voice mumbled from her quivering lips, "…do you think they found Birdie Lady?"

Sven looked down, realizing that Delilah was looking out, probably admiring the same, beautiful scene. She was still watching ahead in the direction of the flare, nuzzled against his breast plate as she clung to him. Sven could feel her warmth, holding her close as her beanie hat was still nested under his stubble chin. The moment was suddenly broken as the sound of an APC plowed down the road.

"Yea," Sven finally answered, "I believe they did."




And the pistons of insurrection pulse in rhythm
Searing in my blood,
Burning like the scorching sun on the asphalt
As I break out of your fist.

They may not remember why,
But they will remember when
That I stood up and spoke
And that the words yanked the very fabric of stability

As the threads snapped to reveal the blemish within
Unraveling, at last coming undone.
Believe me when I say, there will be blood.

Chapter 35: Futile Escape

Yea, I know there was alot going on in this chapter, but it was alot longer before I decided to divide it into other chapters. Anyways, your thoughts so far...

[Jonesybites]

With Raven reunited with Sigma, will they be able to get back to Fort Block before the weather worsens?

Chapter 35: Futile Escape


Grinding through the icy road as the snow started to pick up the pace, the APC comes to a grinding halt, just a few feet from the illuminating flare ahead that was still glowing in the middle of the road.

The door opens up as Sven walks around the vehicle, carrying Delilah to the entry side while the headlights were still blaring.

"C'mon Vinny, get in," Cole's voice rang out as Sven steps inside the cabin of the Dill while Cole continued, "that was some good shots, kid! So what's the word?"

Sven moved quickly into the vehicle as he could feel the heater blasting at full max. He sat Delilah in the front seat next to Cole as he looked up, watching Baird rummage through a compartment, pulling out a medkit and blanket.

"We gotta go, now," Sven said urgently, "…they were mounting their horses and one other Dill that last I checked."

"Where are we going?' Delilah asked.

"We're going to the Block, sweety," Cole responded while Sven shut the door.

Baird looked up, still wearing the garb he stole after they ambushed the Plantire scouting party.

"S***…if what Vin say is true, then we need to haul ass, Cole," said Baird.

"Yea, yea, I heard," Cole groaned as he changed gears and shifted the vehicle forward again, "…it's just this icy road is a b**** to drive on!"

"Good...then that means the militia will have a hard time maneuvering in this as well," said Baird.

Sven quickly took a seat behind Delilah as he helped her get her seat belt on.
He wrapped the strap around her lap and then buckled it in. Sven sat up and looked over, noticing that Raven was quiet, lying on the backseat, in a daze and bewildered.

Sven turned to Baird, watching him still rummaging through a med box while trying to hang on from the bumpy ride.

"S*** Cole," Baird griped, bracing himself as the ride was getting rougher.

"Damn, I told you this road is tricky to drive on," Cole complained as he slows down, trying to avoid sliding off the road.

Baird managed to find an I.V. in the medkit as he pulled it out and a coat hanger, twisting the ends up while hanging it beside Raven. Baird carefully knelt down, gently brushing her forehead while checking her temperature. He then proceeded to unstrap her armor when her body suddenly jerked,
"NO…" she blurted out, without warning. Baird pulled his hand back as if he thought she was going to bite him.

"Rav…listen to me…I have to get this I.V. set up…do you understand?" he said, watching her face go pale, her eyes wide in fright. Sven could see the fear in her soft face, what did they do to her?

"What happened?" Sven asked as Baird looked up with a solemn expression. Baird just shook his head, and it was then that Sven knew that Baird had no idea, and that it troubled him.

Raven was trembling slightly, but Baird couldn't tell if it was because of the cold or if it was because of the anxiety. He gently attempted to unstrap her armor again, but Raven didn't flinch this time. Sven could see her eyes, her pupils move back and forth, as Baird started to dismount her shoulder plates, exposing her fatigues. The Dill jolted again as Baird fell backwards against another seat, breaking his fall.

"S*** Cole…watch the damn road," Baird sneered.

"How the hell am I suppose to watch the damn road when I can't see, not even five feet in front of my face…look at this s***," Cole barked, trying to stay on route as he slowed the Dill even more, keeping a watch for the orange markers on the side of the road as Cole ranted some more, "...man, I'm going to be real pissed if those b****es catch up to us in this s***!”

Baird pulled himself up as he started to take off the heavy coat that he switched with Pellin and loosening his ammo belt. Man, I miss my utility belt…now I'm going to have to get another one, Baird grumbled to himself. As he got comfortable, Baird rubbed the back of his neck while pulling his tags and Raven's necklace to the front of his torso. He was still wearing his under shirt as he pulled his fatigues down to his waist.

Sitting back up, he carefully started to pull Raven's fatigues off of her arms, but she jolted suddenly, flaying her arms as she shrieked,

"No…let go," she screamed, nearly pushing Baird back, but he held his ground as he grabbed her, folding her arms across her chest while trying to calm her down.

"S***…Rav, knock if off…I swear your going to smack me one," Baird griped, but as he looked down to her face, her eyes started to dilate as her face grew heavily pale.

"Aw, s***," Baird blurted out as he grabbed the I.V. with one hand while still holding her down with the other. He manages to free up one of her arms as he held it out, unwrapping the needle from the plastic package with his teeth as he carefully wiped down the entry point with an alcohol, moistened gauze. Managing to insert the needle into a vein, he tapes it up and relaxes, realizing that the hard part was over, or at least for now.

"What's wrong with her?" Sven asked.

"Other than a broken leg, I don't know, Vin…" Baird admitted, "…she's been a nervous wreck since I brought her on."

Cole was doing his best trying not to think about Raven's condition while trying to watch the road, but her sudden, anxiety outbursts was eating at him. When we get back to that place, we're seriously going to smash some f***ing heads, he pondered to himself, relishing in the things he was going to do to those who hurt her.

The markers along the side of the road were starting to fade as the wind outside picked up, blowing the heavy snow in all directions.

"F***…Damon, we're really gettin s*** on," Cole mentioned as he slowed the Dill even more.

"Just…try to keep going Gus…the further we go, the closer we get to Fort Block…without walking."

"Wait, walking?" Cole protested.

"We have to keep going Gus, or else they'll catch up to us," Baird reminded Cole, trying to find a syringe for the morphine, "…and we gotta get there before dark."

Baird turned to look over Raven, noticing an abrasion on her head as he moved his hand, noticing her eyes were moistened, puffy and red. Although her cheeks where still pale, the color in her lips was coming back as the plasma started to flow into her system. He took the syringe, filled with morphine and inserted it into her I.V., gently releasing it into the injection port as she let out a soft sigh, becoming less disorientated. As the morphine took effect, he could feel her starting to relax as her arms loosened under his grip.

Baird couldn't find the words to say anything that would remedy her plight. All throughout the past five days, of all the words they have said to get into each others heads, there was nothing that he could think of that would bring the light back to her face.

"Rav…can you hear me?" he said quietly over the noise of the Dill, trying to snap her out from her daze. Her eyes met his, glaring empty and sober while hazed under the overhang light inside the hull. Her mouth moved slightly, trying to speak to him,

"You were…supposed to go back…to the block," she mumbled with a quenching rasp in her voice.

"So fire me," he responded as he watched her pupils contract again. Raven flashed a slight smirk as she closed her eyes and responded serenely,

"Ok…you're fired."

Baird let out a light chuckle as he reached over to gently wipe down the side of her face with a moistened towelette.

"…and by the way," Baird began as Raven opened her eyes to look at him again, "…your welcome."

Raven gave him a soft smile, but it quickly faded into a frown as she looked over to the others. She noticed Sven was sitting up over the front seat, watching, while Cole was driving, cussing under his breath as the weather outside started to worsen.

"We're, not going to make it…are we," she said as Baird looked up at the others and then turned his gaze back to her, but he didn't say a word. At this point, there was no need to put her under any more stress than what she was already in. He continued to wipe her face down as she let out a sigh.

She started to mumble again, "Leave me…"

Baird's brow dropped as her words perplexed him, wondering if what he heard was right. She quietly mumbled again…

"Leave me behind, please…"

If he didn't hear her the first time, he certainly heard her the second time. His face flushed with anger as he turned around and threw the towelette down and then turned back to face her,

"I just risked our team, going into the militia camp and pulling your ass out of there…and all you want me to do is to leave you?" Baird derides, his jaw clenching and eyes burning.

"I didn't…ask to be saved," Raven softly mumbled, her eyes sinking into her face as the exhaustion was testing her sanity. She could tell that he wasn't happy with her, but she didn't want to sugarcoat the truth either. Nobody has done it for me so why should I?

"…you can't take all of us back…I'll be one less baggage to carry, but it's crucial you get back to the Block...there's more going on than what we have discovered earlier."

Baird looked up for a moment, gathering his thoughts, and then he turned to face her as he let all of it spill out,

"Ya, know…" his mouth quivered as he was somewhat hesitant to speak, but the injury was already taking over, "…I should have left your ass to the Stranded!"

He hesitated for a moment as if he had plenty more to say, but he cut it short as he looked away. Staring at the floor for a moment, he turned around to check the I.V. while making sure it wasn't tangled. He gathered up the supplies in the box and slid it under the seat while trying to hang on from the bumpy ride.

The words sank into Raven like a concrete block, crushing whatever feelings she had left. Normally she would usually let anything Baird say roll off of her back, but this time it didn't. It stayed and it festered and Baird could tell that it did. He watched her gaze roll back up to the ceiling, aching from the inside out until it all just went numb.

The sting shifted Baird's conscience like a noose that was tugging on him. Did he say it to state a fact or was he intentionally trying to wound her back? He finally couldn't just let it all go anymore, not after everything they've just went through. Cole was right. She did care about him; she cared for all of them and it was something he may never fully understand why.

The Dill rocked a bit and then mellowed out again as Sven turned over to watch Raven, still hanging in a daze, drifting in between irrationality and sanity. Baird turned back around, to face her again as he noticed that she was drifting into exhaustion. Baird figured the morphine was making her drowsy. He leaned over to her ear as he laid his hand on her neck, checking her pulse as he started to whisper,

"…You're going to make it…you're tougher than that...just hang in there."

"I thought I was just another whiny b****," Raven mumbled in her fatigued voice, "...and you were right…I can't do this anymore. I'm tired of running..."

"Then stop running...damnit Rav, when are you ever going to trust me?" he scolded her softly. Her eyes fluttered under the cabin light, feeling the morphine taking over as she struggles to even look at him, mumbling.

"It was the militia that destroyed my clan...not the Locusts...we were all set up Damon, by my own kind, and I failed to see it. I'm supposed to pick up on these things..."

"...and the COG was supposed to have "reliable" schematics of the terrain and working communications, but it all turned out to be crap...if it wasn't for your intel, then all of this would have been for nothing...and it will be for nothing if we don't get back, so quit griping about woulda, coulda, shoulda."

Raven could see her own reflection, gazing back at her in his pale eyes, sunken in under his heavy brow, "This is war, Rav...and believe me, s*** happens."

Raven's heartbeat calmed into an even rhythm as her eyes fluttered, fighting to stay awake as she reached over with her hand, and placing it over his that was still monitoring her pulse. Reaching under is palm, she tightens her grip around his hand as she turned her head to look at him, trying to fight the sudden burst of exhaustion while she muttered,

"What a…way…to celebrate a, birthday…" she said before she closed her eyes for the last time as her hand gently went flaccid, succumbing to the morphine. Her body began to lax as her consciousness drifted away from reality, releasing his hand from her hold.

"Rav?" he shook her softly, but she twitched slightly and then fell back into a slumber. Baird grabbed and lifted her hand, placing it onto her chest, and then pulls the blanket over her body as she slept.

"Happy birthday, Rav," he muttered, watching her face lax as it brightened up again from the paleness.

It never occurred to him until recently as he recalled from previous conversations that her biological clock encircled around the annual date of her birth, and it didn't take too long for him to figure out why she intentionally intoxicated herself the night before. She was so far into her "estrus," she was having trouble controlling her urges…it wasn't because she didn't trust us…it was because she didn't trust herself.

Thoughts went through Baird's head, wondering what could have happened if she didn't take matters into her own hands, that could have been turned out to be a rather interesting evening, he pondered.

He was somewhat amused by the notion that Raven was capable of strong sexual urges, possibly more so than the average male when her clock hit the right time. Nevertheless, such a situation could have also turned out equally, just as ugly, resulting in catastrophic consequences.

"How long will she be out?" Sven asked while Baird continued to monitor her pulse.

"Hopefully until we can get her to the hospital…" Baird replied, hoping that the morphine would knock her out even longer than that, considering her "hormonal" condition.

Sven continued to watch Baird, propping himself against the hull wall, leaning his head back as he took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. Sven new that the Corporal was worried, but he would never say it, much less admit it. Baird brought his hand to his forehead and started to rub his brow, trying not to give into duress.

Then it started to happen, the last thing none of them wanted to happen.

"Aw…s***…you've got to be f***ing with me," Cole griped as the engine sputtered in short bursts. Baird cautiously stood up as he listened suspiciously to the dying engine. What perfect timing.

"Let me guess…we ran outta gas…" Baird scoffed. The engine continued to push a few more sequences and then goes dead as the Dill starts to slow down to a full halt.

Cole slammed the steering wheel as he curled his lip,

"Man…didn't they think to fill this thing up?" Cole griped while Baird walked around the middle seat until he reached the console. He leaned over to look at the gas meter and sure enough, it was empty.

"Sigh…let's start packing…we'll need to move quickly," Baird suggested while Sven got up and moved over to the compartments to pull out some blankets and scarves.

"You think we can make radio contact from here?" Cole asked while Baird sat next to Delilah as he started to tinker with the radio console.

"It's worth a shot," Baird commented as he opened up the frequency, "…Gus, why don't you, Vin, and the kid go get bundled up while I get on the horn…we may not be able to communicate, but they may at least locate our frequency."

"You got it," Cole said as he turned to Delilah, "…c'mon kid, let's get you bundled up."

"Ok…" Delilah beamed as she hoped over to the next row of seats, "…but what about the Birdie Lady…is she going to wake up again?"

Baird turned over his shoulder to look at the young girl glare at him with her large, gray eyes.

"She'll wake up again…she's just sleeping," Baird responded.

"Geez, Baird…did you have to sedate her?" Cole asked.

"Gus, please…she'll be fine, just…get her bundled up as well…let me try and make radio contact," said Baird, getting to the task at hand, testing the radio frequency.

Cole turned back around as he helped Sven pull out the contents in the overhead compartments.

"There's only blankets, a few scarves, and some…" Sven looked carefully as he rummaged through a box, "…some rags."

Sven picks up a blanket and wraps it around Delilah,

"Ok, is that alright…are you comfortable?" Sven asked Delilah.

"It's too hot," she griped, starting to sweat under the layers.

Cole snickered, "Baby, it won't be hot for long, I guarantee."

Cole moved over to the side as he moves around Raven's seat, kneeling down as far as his massive body would let him. He pulls up a scarf and gently lifts Raven's limp head. Placing the scarf around her head and neck, he carefully checks her boots and legs, making sure that everything was clamped, strapped, and snug.

Baird turned around as he too made his way over to the compartments, looking for anything that he could use to keep him warm.

"Did you manage to make contact?" Cole asked.

"Just static…which is actually good news, it means their radios are working…even if they can't hear my message, they will at least get a frequency reading," said Baird.

He quickly put back on his fatigues and the coat while Cole loaded up a strap holstered over his neck. He leaned down over Feral,

"Baird…help me out with her," said Cole.

"Sure thing."

Baird moved around next to the edge of Raven's seat as he knelt down and slid his arms under her limp body, scooping her up against his torso and stood up, lifting her from the seat.

"You got the harness on, Gus?" Baird asked as Cole tightened the last strap across his torso.

"I do now…load her up," Cole responded while Baird held Raven close to Cole as Cole strapped her limp body in.

Sven finished bundling Delilah as he leaned over and picked her up while she wrapped her arms around his neck. Sven and Delilah watch as Cole finishes strapping Raven into the harness while Baird wrapped both Raven and Cole in a few more rags and blankets.

"Listen up, ladies…" Baird began as he gathered his own garb, "once we get out, we have to keep moving to stay warm, got it?"

"Got it," said Sven while Cole replied,

"Then let's do this."

Baird opens the door and the snow came in heavily as the cool air whisked in like a vacuum, pushing all the warm air out. He takes the first step out into the white, chilly abyss.

Intermission VI

So close and yet so far...

Anyhoot, let me know what ya think.

[Jonesybites]

Here's the sixth Intermission, a precursor of things to come...

Intermission VI

Captain Miller of Epsilon One sat in the Communications station, sipping on a hot cup of coffee, the only thing he could muster to help warm him up from the Frosts' cold shoulder. As he leans back into his chair, feeling the coffee warming his sinuses, Lieutenant Stroud was tweaking with the radio signals, still keeping an ear out for any possible transmissions from some of their lost squads.

Despite the fact Hoffman ordered Sergeant Fenix to list Sigma One as MIA, Marcus asked Anya to keep listening to the radio just in case. Although the thought of anyone surviving out in the freezing wilderness was improbable, Anya knew that Marcus had a sixth sense for such things and she has long learned to trust him, despite the odds.

Occasionally glancing over the com where Miller propped his feet on the desk near the console, Anya kept communications feeding throughout the complex while Miller yawned from a long excursion the day before, trying to find more venison for the troops. She could tell that Miller was exhausted from wandering out in the cold, hours at a time with Sergeant Mataki, looking for deer, which has been becoming too far in between. Since one of their outposts was mysteriously attacked and raided a few weeks before, they lost a rather substantial amount of rations and supplies that was stored there, forcing the men to cut their rations by another third, if they were going to have enough for the rest of the season. The cold was taking its toll while the men were forced to tolerate the hunger pains after noon, but at least they still had plenty of hot coffee.

Miller let out a sigh, "Heard anything lately, Lieutenant?"

Anya looked up from her post as she meandered through the archive of the most recent communications.

"None, Jon…I haven't heard anything from anyone outside of the Block," Anya replied, solemnly. She knew that Marcus has been worried over Cole and Baird since their latest transmission, but as the days have been counting, so was inevitability.

"Well…it's been almost week sweetheart…and granted I know your sweet-talk can calm the soul of any man," Miller mused, flashing a grin as Anya chuckled lightly at Millers' modesty, "but, I should probably take the hassle off your hands and go tell Fenix the bad news myself."

"Sigh, that's a gracious offer, Captain…but I feel I should take that responsibility."

"Ah, perhaps you're right...you know the Sergeant better than anyone else," Miller gave a smile, a gaze that mellowed Anya's anxiety for the moment as she smiled back, knowing the Captain was just trying to keep her focused and tranquil.

She remembered Jonathon Miller during her academy days, when he would offer to buy her a cup of coffee on occasion just to shoot the breeze, especially to ease her sorrows that followed her mother's death and Carlos', as well as Marcus' incarceration. But her affections were always for the Sergeant, keeping her on edge when he was present, and it was Miller whom eventually caught on to her daze when Marcus appeared, but there was plenty of fish in the sea, and it was seldom a problem for Miller to enchant a lady or two with ease. Nevertheless, there were times when Jon could still make Anya blush, and yet, in the grand scheme of things, Miller would not cross the line when it concerned the Lieutenant, but at times he was tempted to, especially when Anya would occasionally mope around because of Marcus' cold demeanor. The Sergeant would seldom make an effort to express any feelings to her, much less insinuate any desires for companionship, and Miller could tell that it would upset her on occasion.

With that said, Miller would often invite her for a cup of coffee, just to rock the boat a little, and maybe then the Sergeant would take notice. Anya would always laugh at the idea, but as silly as it may sound, she really couldn't argue with Jon's logic. Maybe he's right.

Anya finally took a seat in a chair, rubbing her forehead as she turned the volume of com radio one more time, before she went off for other duties. Without warning, the Captain sat from his seat, spilling some of his coffee on his armor as he stood up and looked over the Lieutenant's shoulder.

"Whoa, hold it right there sweetheart…can you hear that?"

Anya looked up at him and turned the frequency back from where she had it set earlier,

"Ok I got it back, but I don't…" Anya was about to say when a subtle noise was more audible this time around.

"…oh my God….yea, I can hear it."

"Quick, turn up the volume," Miller suggested as Anya pulled up the earphones to get a more audible reading of the transmission.

"It's still pretty weak, Jon…can you alter the frequency just a hair?"

"Sure…one second..."

Miller reached over to the console as he adjusted the frequency, hoping to get a better quality signal. The radio static was breaking up in waves as a faint voice could be heard through the com.

…this is Si….squa…d…we nee….assista…if you….hear…repea…t…

"Well I'll be damned…get a location on that signal Lieutenant, I'm going to form a search party," said Miller.

"I'm on it, Captain…be sure to…" Anya began as Captain Miller interrupted,

"…don't worry, I'll be sure to enlist Fenix," he said while Anya returned a soft smile as he started out of the Com station to gather his troops.

Chapter 36: Returning To Fort Block

Chapter 36 will be posted soon. I'm working on income taxes right now so I had to put editing off to the side, groan.

[Jonesybites]

Taking the rest of the way to Fort Block on foot, the clock is ticking for Sigma squad as the evening, freezing temperatures begin to take it's toll on the group.

Chapter 36: Returning To Fort Block

Tell it like it is
Till there’s no misunderstanding
When you strip it right back
Man feed machine
Machine feed man

Tell it like it is (And on this land, we cast our fortune)
Till there’s no misunderstanding (And on this ground, we make our home)
You make up what you like
Man feed machine
Machine feed man

Peter Gabriel

The Tower That Ate People


Snow was falling from the sky, coming down hard, blinding the road as a drained and weary Sigma One, pushed through the heavy air, pulling each other a step closer to destination.

We're almost there, closer…closer, Sven kept telling himself. Leading the pack while trying to push forward, he carries a bundled, Delilah close to his body, using their duel body heat to try and stay warm. His night vision goggles were strapped over his eyes while a scarf was wrapped around his head. He could see better with the goggles on as the breeze blew the snow in his face, along with Corporal Baird, whom also had his goggles on.

Baird was right behind Sven, keeping him from falling backwards against the wind, while pulling up his legs over the knee-deep snow that has accumulated on the road to Fort Block. The only thing they had to go by as they tried to stay on path was the bright yellow markers along the side of the road that was not quite yet buried, but after tonight, they may as well be.

The storm was becoming stronger, dropping snow like a heavy downpour, covering everything in white. The gray sky darkened the terrain, covering the late sun completely as the air started to freeze.

Cole was huffing, breathing the heavy cold air, trying to keep up, but between the wind pushing against him and the weight combined with Raven's, whom he had strapped up against his torso, was slowing him down. Baird looked back, noticing Cole was struggling to keep up as he turned around and went back. Baird made his way, looking at Gus, shivering as he held Raven close to his body, using her body heat along with his to keep each other warm, but the storm was hitting them hard. Raven was still sedated, lying limp, wrapped in scarves and blankets while her limbs hung from the harness that was haltered around Cole's shoulders. Baird came up to Cole and started to rub Gus's arms, warming him up.

"C'mon man…we can't stop right now, you're doing fine," Baird said, trying to encourage Cole as much as he could, "…here…"

Baird started to pull him, using himself as a shield to protect Cole and Raven from the wind. Baird was wrapped with a blanket over his coat while rags where tied around his waist and Raven's sash, wrapped around his head. Sven was waiting ahead, as he too, walked next to Cole while they all huddled while moving forward through the freezing abyss.

Their limbs we're aching from the frost, biting them through the layers while the cold stung their exposed skin, numbing their flesh as the wind seeped past them, pushing the snow in all directions. The weight of the weather was getting heavier and heavier as the minutes went by. God, I hope somebody heard me, Baird pondered, hoping that someone from the Block was able to pick up the transmission. He continued to look towards the road, hoping for a sign, something. They wouldn't send a Raven out here, that's for sure…not in this weather.

Suddenly, Sven fell to the side, sinking into the snow while Baird quickly tried to grab him, but he noticed that Sven's face was pale, his lips so dry they were cracking. Baird had to muster up some strength just to pull Sven and Delilah back up,

"C'mon Vinny…not now, you gotta pull through it," Baird tried to tell him, as Cole too, slumped by the wayside.

"S***! Gus…get up, damnit!"

Cole could hear Baird, but his body wouldn't move, it couldn't move. He has pulled himself through pain before, but the cold was pinning him down as if he was tied to a freight truck, driving in reverse.

Baird picked up a shivering Delilah while grabbing Sven's arm and pulling him up over his shoulder, trying to drag Sven and Delilah back over to Cole as he leaned over to drop Sven next to Cole and gently placed Delilah in between. Then the weight of the load that Baird was pulling was about to buckle as the wind brushed him down. Baird gathered himself up while crawling over to the rest of his squad, pulling Sven closer to him and Cole as they shield Raven and Delilah between the three.

There they sat, huddled in uncertainty, waiting for the glimmer of hope that someone from the Block will find them, eventually. Baird pulled out his com, one last time, turning it on, hoping they would catch the signal. He wrapped his arms around Sven and Cole as much as he could, peering through his goggles and the thick snow, watching ahead of the snow, buried road.

The markers along the side of the road was dimming as the light faded underneath the blanket of clouds, swallowing the landscape around them. All has faded to black and white as the snowflakes swirled around them, draping them steadily until, in the distance, they could see a ray of light, shining subtly from the void.

Death stands from a distance, his silhouette standing between them and the light, watching and waiting, but not making an effort to reach out to them. Just take us now and be done with it, damn you!

"What the f*** are you waiting for?" Damon screamed, tempting fate while his throat dried up and his voice was quashed by the wind. As his eyes began to blur, the light illuminated into his pupils as he brought his hand to shield them from its brilliance. The silhouette in the distance began to move, closer…

********

The ride was bumpy at best, feeling the jolt from the struts in the back of the Dill, bracing for more bumps along the winding road. The heater in the cabin was on full blast, trying to keep the console warm as well as the crew, while attempting to keep the frost off of the windshield as they tried to steer in a total, white void.

The crew inside felt a sudden jolt as everyone inside jerked to one side,

"Damnit, Bjork…slow down, s***," barked Captain Miller of Epsilon One, riding shotgun alongside Corporal Bjork, trying to make out the road ahead of them.

"I can't see the f***ing markers along the side of the road, sir," Bjork sneered in an concoction of sarcasm and anxiety that had been festering in the cabin since they left Fort Block, trying to locate the source of a weak radio signal.

Accompanying Epsilon was Delta, carefully monitoring the radio signal that would come in waves of static in between frequencies. Sergeant Marcus Fenix sat anxiously, trying to make out the direction of the signal. It was a longshot at best, but so was anything else he has done throughout his military career. For the past week, they have been searching for the whereabouts of Sigma One, and their latest transmission was the first sign in days, as faint as it was.

He could remember the transmission, buried somewhere in the static. Marcus replayed the transmission over and over again, trying to stabilize a very frail signal, but the faint voice imbedded somewhere in the transmission all too familiar. Baird is alive out here, somewhere.

They were taking a risk, coming out in such demanding conditions, but Marcus wasn't going to let the impending weather stop him from finding his men, even if this hell froze over, he wasn't going to leave his men behind, not this time. He occasionally looked up, checking up with the Captain, anxiously waiting for something in sight, but with the snow making the air dense, was adding to their frustrations.

Dom sat quietly, watching Marcus monitor the radio com, waiting for something to come though, watching the others in the cabin as they hung onto whatever they could, every time Bjork would make a turn.

"S***…got anything Bjork?" Dom blurted out, noticing that Bjork was slowing the vehicle down.

"Natta…f*** this weather, man."

"Got anything, Sergeant?" said Miller as he turned to Fenix.

"Nothing…just static," Marcus grumbled, hearing nothing but the same thing over and over for the past twenty minutes since they left Fort Block. Epsilon's medic, Sergeant Grimes peered over the crowd,

"We need to pick up the pace…they're not going to survive for too much longer if we don't find them," Grimes reminded them.

"You think we don't know that, Doc?" Bjork scoffed, trying to drive and lookout for a sighting at the same time, while the Captain kept a sharp eye between the navigation console and the road ahead. The crew was getting antsy, hoping for something, anything to find their comrades alive, but as the time passed, the possibility of finding them alive was thinning.

"Whoa, whoa…s***," Bjork slowed even more, sitting up at the edge of the steering wheel, "…aw, you see that Captain?"

"Yea I do…carefully, move the headlights," Captain Miller said in monotone, peering through the small windshield, noticing something in the road ahead.

Marcus got up from his seat, moving to the front, trying to look out through the windshield,

"Son of a…pull over, I'm going out there," Marcus ordered.

"You got it, Sergeant," said Bjork as he slowed the Dill down to a stop, switching on the high beams while Captain Miller took off his seat belt, grabbing a flashlight from the side of the cabin.

"Is it them?" Dom asked in anticipation.

"We're going to find out, Dom," Marcus said in a solemn tone. As Miller was trying to unlock the front hatch, Dom quickly took off his seat belt as he grabbed the nearest blanket from an overhead compartment and slapped it under his fleeced arm.

Miller turned around towards the crew,

"Get ready ladies," he said before he opened up the door. The APC opened up, and the blistering air swarmed in quickly, pushing the snow into the cabin.

"F***…we need to hurry this up," Bjork yelled out over the wind as Miller, Fenix, and Dom marched out into the freezing abyss. Sergeant Grimes was rummaging through compartments in the back, pulling out medical supplies just in case, preparing for the worst as much as he could while their sniper, Private Welche started to fold the back seats into the side compartment, making room for Grimes.

The three men continued forward, moving carefully through the thick snow, trying to make out a clump on the side of the road in the distance ahead. Marcus pushed forward, a scarf wrapped around his head and neck, trying to peer though the thick snow as he noticed something as if it was moving.

With Miller and Dom not far behind, Marcus picked up the pace, lifting his knees above the deep snow, turning his hips as he gets closer to something or someone that was apparently standing ahead of him. He couldn't tell what it was, as the figure was swaying, trying to stand against the wind as pieces of clothing, draped around the figure was flapping in the wind. Could it be Death?

Marcus moved closer, trying to get a better look at the figure until he saw something familiar, something glistening from the radiance of the light coming from Miller's flashlight. The body started to lean, after dropping its arms, hanging onto whatever equilibrium it had left, as a flash of blue glistened across its eye sockets.

"BAIRD…" Marcus yelled out as he started to run as fast as his legs could take him, running over to the Corporal, barely hanging on, drifting away into the white abyss. Marcus runs over, grabbing Baird by the torso as he slumped into Marcus' arms.

"Baird…talk to me you asswipe, don't you die on me or so help me God, I will reprimand your sorry ass," Marcus yelled at him, trying to get Baird back into consciousness, but Damon's body started to go limp as Marcus held him up. In the distance, Marcus could see some other bodies, huddled in a pile,

"DOM!"

"I SEE THEM…" Dom yelled out as he and Miller ran to the others, passing up Marcus, hold on Cole, I'm coming.

Miller got there first, pulling up another Gear, quickly noticing that it was his former rookie sniper.

"Vinny," Miller barked, tapping him on the face, trying to wake him up, "you lucky son of a b****!"

Dom quickly joined him as they both look down, noticing quickly that there was two other people bundled in between Sven and Cole,

"F*** me…they got their Feral guide with them…and what appears to be a kid, s***," Miller turned over his shoulder and into his com, "…WELCHE, BJORK, get your asses over here, NOW!"

Private Welche jumped out of the cabin and into the elements, followed by Bjork, making haste as they close in on Marcus' position.

Moving carefully, Marcus was moving back towards the Dill, dragging Baird along over his shoulder, trying to remain stable in the damning weather.

"MEDIC," Marcus roared, pushing along as he was coming towards the Dill. Grimes quickly jumped out and welcomed the Sergeant, extending his arms to help carry their comrade into the Dill.

"S***, Sergeant…get him back here…I'll try to make as much room as possible, but we're going to get cramped here real quick."

"We'll figure that out as we go along, Doc…"

"I need to get him on plasma, help me lie him on the floor."

Marcus and Grimes laid Baird on the floor, setting him down carefully while Grimes carefully took off the sash from Damon's head and cautiously started to remove his goggles from his eyes.

Suddenly, just as they removed the goggles, Baird started to twitch, and then let out a groan,

"Corporal…can you hear me?" Grimes started to talk, trying to get Baird's attention. Baird suddenly started to flinch, shifting his body in short bursts,

"Baird, stop, hold still," Marcus knelt down, trying to calm Baird down as he started to curse,

"F***…that hurts," Baird barked, shivering violently as Marcus holds him down while Grimes proceeds to remove his coat and armor.

Marcus looks up, noticing Welche coming in with another Gear, up over his shoulder, trying to stabilize his weight as he walks in the Dill. Bjork followed shortly behind, carrying a shivering little body as he stepped in and places a little kid in the back seat.

Marcus gets up to help Welche as he quickly drops down, lowering the soldier onto a nearby seat, next to the kid. As they placed the Gear down, he started to mumble, in between shivers, calling out to them.

"Don't…forget…others," the soldier squeaked out.

"What's your name, Private?" asked Marcus as he carefully starts to unravel the scarf from around his head.

"Vi…V…Vinn…y," Sven muttered while Marcus carefully unstraps the goggles from Sven's face. As Marcus takes them off, he notices the frostbite on Sven's lips and cheeks, blistering.

"Hang on, Vinny," said Marcus, grabbing a blanket that Grimes left out nearby, and placed it around Sven.

"Vin, Vinny…you there?" Baird managed to muscle out while still lying on the floor, bundled in a blanket that Grimes pulled from the compartment.

"I..I'm here…Corp…oral," Sven said, slightly turning his head. Marcus looked down and noticed Baird moving his cracked lips, trying to communicate in between shivers,

"What, about…the kid…?"

"Del…lilah," Sven muttered,

"She's right here, Private," Bjork answered as he quickly scanned Delilah's face, wrapping her in another blanket, "she's ok…just a little cold."

"Gus…where's, Gus?" Baird whimpered.

"He's coming, Baird," Marcus answered.

"…and…Rav…" Baird started to mumble. Marcus looked up at Grimes and then to Bjork,

"Who…what are you talking about?" Marcus questioned.

Sven started to mutter, "Feral…where's…Feral?"

Before Marcus could answer, Miller's voice is heard over the bristling wind,

"Somebody get out here and lend us a hand…"

"I'm on it," Bjork blurted out as he jumped over the front seat and darted out of the Dill, moving as fast as he could through the deep snow.

"Welche..come help the Corporal," Grimes asked.

"Sure thing…" Welche responded as me meandered over to Baird's position.

"Sergeant," Grimes turned to Marcus, "I got the Corporal on the I.V. and I'm going to check on the Private…can you look over the girl?"

"Yea," Marcus responded as he stepped around Sven and moved over to Delilah, whom was bundled like a caterpillar in a cocoon.

"Hey, kid…" Marcus called softly in a low, raspy voice, "you ok? Just…nod your head yes or no…"

Delilah peered through her wrappings and looked up at the big Gear. Between shivers, she tried to nod her head as she trembled while lifting her little, gloved hand. She held it out as Marcus looked down, struggling with the words to say as he extended his own hand and gently took hers in. It was then he could hear her quietly mutter,

"I…want to go…home."

"We all do, kid."

"But…where's…Birdie Lady…we can't leave Birdie Lady," Delilah choked out as Baird slowly looked up, trying to keep some poise in all of this,

"We're not…leaving Birdie lady behind…" Baird was able to muster while Welche tried to keep the I.V. from getting tangled. Suddenly, Grimes started to move back from the APC entrance.

"Sergeant…I think they're going to need your help on this one…" said Grimes.

Bjork and Dom was making their way to the Dill entrance, carrying Cole. They carefully moved him in as Marcus went over and picked up Cole's legs while Dom had one arm and Bjork the other.

"Guys, over here…put him on the floor, next to the Corporal," Grimes instructed as the men carefully placed Cole next to Baird.

"S***, Gus…GUS, can you hear me?" Marcus started to yell out, "…you answer me now, Private, you hear me?"

Cole was shivering profusely, trying to muster the strength to open his frost bit mouth.

"He…here…re…reporting for…duty. Sir…" Cole was able to spit out. As Grimes started to rip into Cole's fatigues, exposing his arm, for an I.V., Baird started to move as he looked up at Grimes.

"Sit…me up, please," Baird muttered out.

"Hold on, Corporal…" Grimes said, putting the needle in Cole's vein, hanging the bag on a compartment hook.

Suddenly, Marcus looked up to see Miller, moving quickly inside the Dill with a small, framed person lying limp in his arms.

"GRIMES…get another blanket and I.V." Miller shouted, "…this one's in bad shape!"

Marcus moved to the entrance to meet Miller. Miller carefully placed Raven in his arms,

"She's been sedated…and it looks like she has a broken ankle," said Miller as he turned around to shut the door, while Bjork took the driver's seat and began to rev up the Dill.

Marcus moved over to the others, carrying the little woman as Grimes helped Baird sit up against the cabin wall. Baird turned his gaze over to Marcus,

"Set…her here," Baird suggested, moving up and making space as he extended his arm. Marcus knelt down, gently placing Raven in between Baird and Cole. Grimes started to unwrap the cloth around Raven's head, revealing a pale, rosy facade,' with dry lips and sunken eyes.

"Is that…Feral?" Cole asked as he slightly turned his head. Marcus just glared at Cole, nodding his head, assuming the woman was whom Cole was referring to.

"She's here…Cole," Baird muttered, "she…already has…a connector in her…left arm…"

Grimes nodded as he knelt down, "Alright…I'll look."

Cole mustered the strength to yell out, "Vinny…you here?"

"Yea…" Sven yelled back, "I'm, here."

"..and Delilah…"

"She's doing fine, Gus," Marcus assured Cole.

Grimes tore into Raven's attire, trying to free up her left arm as he scans for cannula connector to place in the I.V., when he suddenly noticed it, still taped to her arm. Baird carefully placed his hand on Raven's forehead, stroking her hair, trying to find something warm to see if she was even alive.

"Rav…" Baird tried to muster out, searching for a pulse.

"She's alive, Corporal," Grimes tried to assure him the best he could, "…a little worse for wear, but she's alive."

Then Baird moved his other hand over Cole's head, patting it gently,

"G, Gus…you there?"

Cole turned his head slightly as he responded,

"Yea…I'm…here…"

Marcus sat and watched them in awe, wondering how they actually survived out in this frozen hell. Grimes managed to connect the I.V. into Raven while he hung the bag next to Cole's. Cole reached over as he patted Baird's leg,

"She'll, be…fine," Cole assured him, finally thawing from the warmth inside the cabin. Dom sat next to Cole on the floor, unfolding some more blankets to place under Cole's head.

"Ok, Cole…lift your head up, man," said Dom. Cole slowly lifted his head enough for Dom to slid it under, and then dropped it back down.

Marcus sat up in the last open seat in the Dill as he reached for the radio com,

"Control…this is Delta, come in."

A sudden sparce of static blared from the com, until a sketchy voice could be heard,

"This is...control...go...ahead,"

"We found Sigma, I repeat…we found Sigma One. We need an immediate medical team waiting upon arrival, do you copy?"

"Roger that...Delta…How many?"

"We have five, control. They're in pretty bad shape, so we need the medical team to be ready and waiting as soon as we get in."

"Understood, Delta. They'll be ready...upon...arrival, control out."

Part 2 continued on the next thread...

[Jonesybites]

Part 2 of Chapter 36...

The House of Healing (LOTR soundtrack) was an audio that inspired the sequences for this scene...just ignore the video, lol.

The staff medics of Fort Block, scurried around the makeshift hospital, setting up beds and monitors while stacking towels and blankets next to galvanized tubs that were placed along the side of the beds. Nurses set up the curtains while others were filling the tubs with hot water and prepping the beds with fresh sheets and pillows.

Lieutenant Stroud was walking in a hurry, scanning the room that used to be a locker room, now a hospital room to place Sigma in when they arrive. She checked to make sure they had five of everything, including galvanized tubs for thawing and cleaning. She didn't know what to expect when Delta and Epsilon came back, so she instructed the medical staff to prepare for the worst.

Anya left the room, moving outside as she buttoned up her coat and wrapped her scarf around her neck, trying to withstand the cold wind that stung her delicate face. Gears were waiting near the Fort entrance, preparing for the Dill's return from earlier that evening. Hoffman waited outside in his usual attire, waiting patiently, with Sergeant Mataki hanging back, waiting anxiously.

But the audience that struck Anya the most, waiting for Sigma's return was the Feral scouts. They sat out in the weather, withstanding the cold surprisingly better than everyone else. Even the latest Feral recruits that joined them shortly after deployment were out, watching and waiting for their linguist to return to them. Anya had never seen the Feral so concerned for one of their own before.

A familiar noise could be heard in the distance as everyone in the Fort began to move with anticipation. Anya quickly stepped out from the building, placing her hand next to her com,

"Delta, this is control, do you read?"

"This is Delta…we're coming in, get ready."

"Roger that, Delta…we can hear you coming…the medics are standing by, over."

Shortly after the last transmission, the APC roared in slowly, trying to move through the slushy snow that has piled up within the past few hours. The Dill carefully drives up towards the hospital, moving close to the entrance as it comes to a complete halt.

Shortly after the vehicle stops, the hatch door opens up as Captain Miller is the first to exit. He quickly starts to gesture to the medical staff, waiting near the entrance,

"Bring the gurney's…we can load them up from here," Miller ordered. Marcus was the next to step out of the Dill, carefully carrying Sven over his shoulder as he gently placed Sven on the first gurney while Miller helps a nurse to bring the next one.

Everyone in the Fort, watching the events unfold was standing quietly on edge, waiting to hear the news of Sigma's condition. Hoffman watched as Delta and Epsilon started to unload the others.

Dom was the next to come out with Raven, holding her head to his chest while her legs dangled over his other arm, carefully placing her down while Welche followed behind, holding up her I.V. As soon as Dom laid her down on the next gurney, the nurses began to move her into the building. Miller and Bjork carried Cole, carefully placing him down in a nearby gurney while Marcus and Grimes moved out with Baird. Welche followed, carrying Delilah as he carefully placed the little girl into the arms of one of the nurses nearby.

Anya noticed the apprehension in Hoffman's expression, not to mention Bernie's, as Sergeant Mataki placed her hand over her mouth, watching in shock at Sigma's condition. She watched from the distance as they placed Cole down, throwing blankets on his body and moved him inside. Marcus and Grimes carefully placed Baird down into another gurney, propping up his head. Baird turned over as he reaches and grabs Marcus' arm,

"Look into…the Jacinto archive, and look up a former Gear…by the name of Morose ."

Marcus looked at him with a perplexed expression on his face while Baird continued,

"He's…the leader of the militia, Marcus," Baird was able to spit out, definitely catching the attention of the surrounding Gears as Marcus looked up at the others.

Marcus looked back down at Baird, placing his hand on Baird's shoulder,

"I'll look it up…but you need to rest, you hear me?" said Marcus.

Baird forced a grin as he closed his eyes while the medics took him inside. Marcus watched them take Baird in until he was no longer in sight. He then turned over to see Hoffman walking towards the hospital entrance, opened the door and walked in. Marcus stood there for moment, pondering what Baird had told him, an ex-Gear is leading the Stranded militia? F***.

********

The atmosphere outside hung blankly, as everyone went back to their stations while all of the anxiety drifted inside the hospital. For Cole, Baird, Sven, and Delilah, the vicinity was warm, at home. Baird turned his head, peering through groggy eyes, not paying any attention to the nurse drawing his blood as he watches the other staff carefully pick up Sven and place him in a bed next to Cole.

Drifting in and out of exhaustion, Cole was dead weight for the staff as five of them attempted to move him on his bed. He could hear the voices of the staff running around his head but his focus was on Sven. The kid made it…he actually made it.

Sven was somewhat conscience, listening to the nurse as she adjusted his IV while another was threading a catheter into his urethra. Gus could hear Sven respond to the nurse in a low moan. He was medicated by now, for sure.

Cole slowly turned his head to look on the other side where Baird was already transferred. He could hear Damon griping already, blurting out profanities in his tired, course voice. He could hear Damon trying to convince them that he didn't need rest, until one of the nurses got tired of Baird's ranting as she quickly loaded a sedative into his IV, hoping it will knock him out. As the drug pulsed through his veins, Baird's words started to slur as he slowly dozed off, until he succumbed to the medication. As predicted, he was hushed.

Cole chuckled as he watched his best friend slip into a comatose state while the nurse proceeds to thread a catheter into his urethra. Man, he's really going to be in a s***ty mood when he gets up.

The nurse finally turns her attention to Cole as she proceeds to place another blanket on his body,

"Are you doing ok, Private?" she asked, breaking Cole from the daze.

"Yea…I just, have one question ma'am…" Cole asked in a tired voice as thoughts of Raven's whereabouts flooded his conscience.

"Of course, soldier,"

"How's Feral?"

"You mean the Feral who came in with you?"

"Yea…I don't…see her in here…"

"She was relocated into the trauma station…the Corporal suggested to the head nurse to screen her…"

"Screen…for what?"

"…to check to see if she was raped…it's a normal procedure for anyone whom was held in captivity."

The color in Cole's face started to pale as the news sunk in. He wasn't quite sure if it was better for him to know. The nurse could see his expression turn cheerless as she continued,

"She's doing fine, otherwise…it's, just a precaution…"

Cole didn't say a word as he looked up at her wearily and nodded his head. She gently placed her hand on his forehead,

"She'll be ok…they may move her back here after they realign the break in her leg and cast it."

Lifting her hand from his head, she gave a brief smile while pulling the covers over his body. Cole basked in the warmth from the bitter cold, hellhole they have been swarming in all week, but thoughts of his friends, his only family, ran insistently through his head.

He thought of Sven, how the kid actually made it with them, and if it weren't for Vinny, they wouldn't have been able to pull off their rescue mission from Plantire, the kid deserves a medal after all this.

He thought of Damon, the jackass that he is, who managed to come up with a sound plan that actually worked in getting Raven out of Plantire. Cole has since wondered why Damon changed his mind concerning rescuing their Feral guide. Was it because of principle, or does Damon actually like Feral? S***, now wouldn't that be something!

But, knowing Baird, Cole figured that there was an ulterior motive for why Baird does what he does, and it's normally, seldom out of heart. Why would his efforts for saving Raven be any different, especially when the two would quarrel sometimes, just for the sake of quarreling? Perhaps that was the reason. Maybe Damon likes arguing with Feral, it seemed like the more plausible theory when it concerned his cantankerous, best friend.

Cole turns his head over and looks at Baird from his bed, watching him snore obnoxiously, s***, he's earned the rest. Cole couldn't recall the last time Baird ever had a good night's sleep, especially when Baird would often stay up going over his notes, trying to decipher the Locust language or drawing out motorized diagrams, or doodling as a means of venting, which was a normal occurrence. He watched as Baird slept soundly, for the first time in a long time, wondering what Baird was thinking about, or dreaming about. What does Damon Baird miss the most?

Surrendering to exhaustion, Cole finally closes his eyes, drifting into a void that was calling him, compelling him to let go. He could hear Damon's voice, ranting over petty things while listening to Sven talk consistently about his pretty sister, Gwen. He could hear the soft, mellow tone in Feral's voice, rebuking Baird for something that he said that was tactless or out of context. Then, he would hear her mutter softly, conversing with Sven over random things while Cole watched the soft light glistening on her face as the illumination would contour her cheeks, nose, and brow. Her smile was radiant, bringing out something surreal that complimented everything that Raven could be if she really wanted to. It was something he didn't pay attention to before until he saw it etched in detail, illustrated in perfect form…when he snuck a peek into Damon's journal the night before.

Chapter 37: The Best Laid Plans

As always, feedback is welcome.

[TheRealBigBoss]

Okies, so I'm on chapter 13 so far... yay me?

And I'm liking it, the setting's good and the character interaction is done really well. I especially like the comedy element, harder to do than people might think.

Now the fun part... the critical appraisal!!!

I felt Baird's dialogue got a little too vulgar in places, yeah, he's an asshole, yeah, he's a soldier, yeah, he's a man... lol. But still, personally I feel Damon is more reserved in some ways, and having him say that dialogue just feels "off" somehow. I feel he'd be more analytical, more technical in his use of language. Or maybe it's just me...

Weirdly, the part with the roaches had a greater sense of danger than the part with the wretches. I know that might be intentional, since a bunch of wretches wouldn't post that great a thread to these guys, but I got the impression it wasn't something you were really interested in, it felt like it was written just matter of factly in some ways. Kinda lacking the excitement of battle, ya know what I mean?

Some of the wordage didn't quite flow too well for me either, here's an example...

"...someone with a countless history of insubordination for pissing off authority figures!”

The use of countless seems odd here, and using history of insubordination as an adjective to describe an affect seems a little off too. Or maybe I'm talking out my ass? A little help here literary graduates?

I'mma gonna stop now. Sounds like all I'm doing is b*tching about this, lol. And I'm not really, I'm trying to help you get better... at least I think I am. Anyways, Raven is really developing nicely so far, and her relationship with the other three characters is really helping to define her as a character herself. Congrats on that, and please continue, you've got a decent tale here to tell.

[Jonesybites]

Finally...somebody out there is actually reading my cr@p!

Actually, I need the feedback. My Beta reader mentioned some grammar errors on word usage and structure...and then they stopped at chapter two, LOL. He/she has disappeared since…and that was three months ago.

A lot of the word usage makes sense to me, but that’s the flaw…which is why I get aggravated when I edit my own stuff because I know that there are things that only others can pick up, while I’m kinda, dur! ...and believe me, I've lost count of how many times I have edited these chapters.

You would be the first to mention the sequence with the wretches, moves a bit "dry." Granted, I did illustrate most of these sequences using the gamplay platform, so that might explain the "lack of excitement." ...it's a reasonable criticism.

Baird, a man?...Nah! Anyway, the vulgarity that Baird uses is an attempt to observe her mindset, seeing how she ticks. He treats her like a machine because I got the impression from sources that it's the only way he knows how, to get Raven to expose her temperament, resulting in her revealing things about the Feral culture that she would proabably not disclose otherwise. Now whether I was successful at illustrating it can be subject to opninion, which I have had little of. Observing his dialogue in multiple mediums (novel, game, comic) the only time he seems to primarily use technical jargon is in his journal entries, otherwise, he's usually sarcastic and self-serving. At times he has been reserved, but they normally fall when he's in focus...if this is incorrect, then I need to review the sources....but it is my purpose to try and keep the existing characters as close to canon as possible with some added speculative traits, so thanks for the observation.

But, anyhoosits, critiques are needed...so far, no one has come out and said it sucks (knock on wood) and I am close to completion with this thing, yayz...I just hope that people for the most part are enjoying it.

[SKORGE]

Hey, I'm reading!

Back to reading the story........ Maroose is still an asshole scum!

[TheRealBigBoss]

^ Yeah, the lack of critiques is worrying, but it happens from time to time. Reason I started the Fan Fic Writers Support Group in the first place, I was hoping to build a community. Epic Phail on my part, but hell... I tried... :'(

You could be right about Baird, I can imagine him being abrupt and tactless so it's not that much of a stretch, and he is after all a soldier, and they swear like sailors! It's probably more me just not liking it. In my twisted mind, there's a purity to Baird and I just get edgy when folk mess with that, lol.

Yeah, I'll keep reading, it's just... it's kinda overwhelming when there's so much, ya know? It actually makes it's hard to pick up and remember things that I thought needed changing, lol. And a forum isn't the best format to do proof reading, if I'm honest.

But like I said, this is really good. It's got a flowing story, the writing is solid. The characters are really good and the description and settings help draw the reader in. Like you know the part where they're all sleeping together in that room? I thought that was great, almost felt like I was there with them, lol. So keep going, these things have a way of living on long after they've been posted.

[SKORGE]

Don't tell me it's done!? Is it over!?

Awe man, I was hoping to read some more. That was actually something 'amazing'. And the way you managed to bring Baird into the whole 'love' angle and pull it off it great! You've really pulled Baird and Cole off without taking away from the main plot-line, and from other characters.

Maroose is still everything said before, but yeah, amazing. Didn't notice anything that needed change since everyone else already got to it. More?

[Jonesybites]

^ Yeah, the lack of critiques is worrying, but it happens from time to time. Reason I started the Fan Fic Writers Support Group in the first place, I was hoping to build a community. Epic Phail on my part, but hell... I tried... :'(

You could be right about Baird, I can imagine him being abrupt and tactless so it's not that much of a stretch, and he is after all a soldier, and they swear like sailors! It's probably more me just not liking it. In my twisted mind, there's a purity to Baird and I just get edgy when folk mess with that, lol.

Yeah, I'll keep reading, it's just... it's kinda overwhelming when there's so much, ya know? It actually makes it's hard to pick up and remember things that I thought needed changing, lol. And a forum isn't the best format to do proof reading, if I'm honest.

But like I said, this is really good. It's got a flowing story, the writing is solid. The characters are really good and the description and settings help draw the reader in. Like you know the part where they're all sleeping together in that room? I thought that was great, almost felt like I was there with them, lol. So keep going, these things have a way of living on long after they've been posted.

Yea, your right, it is long...which I have long theorized it being probably the leading reason for lack of feedback. Oh, wellz...

But I agree with your twisted mind...there is an constituent somewhere that probabaly a few has the patience to trigger. I believe that some of Baird's negativity is a barrier while his insecurities resides on the other side. These guys are out in the wilderness for literally a week...and that's a long time for teh four to be putting up with each other, with Cole being the more tolerant of the group.

Don't tell me it's done!? Is it over!?

Noooooo...are you kidding? I doubt the COG is going to let a lunatic masochist run around with an army, stolen rations, and accummalative ammunitions. They will get dealt with, it's just how they intend to do it without someone blowing the whistle. Hopefully, the intel that Sigma squad has discovered will give some advantage.

[SKORGE]

Noooooo...are you kidding? I doubt the COG is going to let a lunatic masochist run around with an army, stolen rations, and accummalative ammunitions. They will get dealt with, it's just how they intend to do it without someone blowing the whistle. Hopefully, the intel that Sigma squad has discovered will give some advantage.

Oh thank god, I thought you left it to the 'happens outside of the fiction' etc. Must see brutal carvation of Stranded scum....... now!

[Jonesybites]

Yea, Im working on it as I speak. It just needs some tweaking for more dramatic stimulation to go with the gore, cadaver slicing goodness...oh, the drama

I just had to go back to Jacinto's Remnant to polish some other details, groan.

[Razor605]

I know I can't review to save my life, but I just want to say that this is a GREAT story. Everything just feels so smooth and natural that sometimes I start thinking maybe these are like leaked chapters from an upcoming "official" book. You've done a great job Jonesy... I DEMAND MORE.

[Jonesybites]

I know I can't review to save my life, but I just want to say that this is a GREAT story. Everything just feels so smooth and natural that sometimes I start thinking maybe these are like leaked chapters from an upcoming "official" book. You've done a great job Jonesy... I DEMAND MORE.

Holy cow, you read this monster all the way through? I don't even have the patience for that. It took me almost two weeks to read Jay's (one I recommend if you want to read about the Locust' POV)

But any feedback at this point is great, even if people tell me they hate it,

Leaked chapters, I wish...I was so dissapointed in Jacinto's Remnant, I just took off on a brief tangent concerning the potential conflicts between the COG and Stranded. The synopsis in the back of the book tricked me, booooo. (please note, that my dissapointment is nothing personal against Karen as a writer; her writing was great)

I seriously hope the next novel is better...but then again, they can only reveal so much without giving away the whole story line for the third game, groan.

[Razor605]

Are you kidding "read this monster?" Now thanks to you I have mountains of soda cans and popcorn DRUMS to clean from my desk. Yeah thanks JB.

BTW I like the idea that you have about Baird and his "art" in the journal. We need to talk about copyrights because I really want to use that idea. Pretty please?

I DON'T BELIEVE IT...another Taco...

[Jonesybites]

Are you kidding "read this monster?" Now thanks to you I have mountains of soda cans and popcorn DRUMS to clean from my desk. Yeah thanks JB.

BTW I like the idea that you have about Baird and his "art" in the journal. We need to talk about copyrights because I really want to use that idea. Pretty please?

I DON'T BELIEVE IT...another Taco...

"Hehe...Taco's Rule!" George Bush from Robot Chicken skit.

Yea, well I got a pile of laundry that's been sitting on the living room recliner for over a week. I was going to fold it today, but then I got high...(Mr. Sands theme song, by SKORGE)

But sure, use the doodling idea...I would find it hard to believe that someone of his (Baird) "vast emperical skills" wouldn't be able to illustrate his obervations...especially if Epic has placed some emphasis on his journal. Judging by his character, I have long presumed that he had, at least some "side notes" concerning his opinions regarding his squad mates, lol.

[SKORGE]

Hahaha damn Mr. Sands....

Well like Razor said, looking forward towards more of your writing, seriously, must read more. And hopefully more of Maroose damned friends get stomped into the ground eight feet deep! Die scum, die!

[Razor605]

Oh "Because I got High" I grew up to that song! ...what? I did. One of the best songs I heard.

PLEASE PLEASE BE a kind person and let Marcus handle Maroose (make sure to leave the weapons out...they're too quick...even the chainsaw) buahahahahaha.

[Jonesybites]

Oh "Because I got High" I grew up to that song! ...what? I did. One of the best songs I heard.

PLEASE PLEASE BE a kind person and let Marcus handle Maroose (make sure to leave the weapons out...they're too quick...even the chainsaw) buahahahahaha.

Nah, I'm not going to let a confrontation of epic proportions be orchestrated into a pile of dribble, random acts.

Example: Vinny's running through the woods and accidently trips over a branch, subsequently pulls the trigger on his rifle, shooting a round that ricochet's off of Cole's chest plate and Marcus' do rag (only because it's that awesome) and just so happens to hit Morose square in the head and drops dead. Yay, battle over!

Ok, look, I know we all can't be as epic as Mr. Sands, but, hey, I'm trying.

[Razor605]

I will shut up now, mistress. I meant not to anger you (bows his head).

I know I'm annoying, heard it before.

Seriously though I really like the story...any insight on how long it's going to be? It better be a 3 digit number.

[SKORGE]

Oh "Because I got High" I grew up to that song! ...what? I did. One of the best songs I heard.

PLEASE PLEASE BE a kind person and let Marcus handle Maroose (make sure to leave the weapons out...they're too quick...even the chainsaw) buahahahahaha.

I was thinking the same thing...... Show that som'bi*ch who's boss!

[Jonesybites]

Thawing out from being out in the freezing wilderness for nearly a week, Sigma tries to come to terms from recent revelations concerning Morose and his militia...

Chapter 37: The Best Laid Plans

Stirring from what seemed to be an eternity from a long incubation after roaming in the bitter Frost, Sven started to open his bleary eyes as his pupils take time to dilate from the light that was illuminating the room. As the pictures start to focus, he rummages through his memory, trying to recall where he was, but all he could remember was the freezing cold that numbed his limbs. Carefully lifting his head from his pillow, he looks down and subconsciously, begins to wiggle his toes, holy crap…I can feel my toes; I still have my toes. He then peered down over to the fingers on his right hand, watching his digits move, one after another. Got my toes, got my fingers…oh my God, my balls!

Sven tried to quickly lift the blankets from his body as his arms started to ache in the process, ugh, I moved them too fast, s***. He slows down as he proceeds to remove the blanket from his groin. He sits himself up while trying to loosen himself from the hospital gown that was wrapped tightly around him. Untying the string that held his gown in place, he carefully pulls the gown up to his waist. Oh thank God, they're still there…wait,

Rational thoughts began to surface as he realized where he was. He glanced at the catheter tube that was connected from his urethra and trailed down to a urine bag that was hanging from his bed. It was then he noticed a series of wires that was tangled in the mix, including his I.V. tube. He looked over to his left arm and attempted to disconnect the connector, taped to his arm from the I.V. port. He then slowly moved his arm down and proceeded to carefully remove the catheter from his urethra, cringing slightly from the awkward sensation.

He takes a moment to relax, feeling somewhat drained from just trying to sit up in his bed. Ugh, I feel weird, he said to himself as he brought his hand to his face, feeling the wild whiskers that were itching his face. [I]S***, I need to shave.[/I]

He looks around the room to notice an empty hospital bed next to him with the sheets disheveled and the I.V. missing. Another bed was also empty with the I.V. cannula connector lying on the pillow and the sheets strewn on the floor. Whoa, we made it…we actually made it to the Block.

As he looked around, trying to make out the recent commotion that was coming from outside the room, it suddenly dawned on him, wait, where's Cole and Baird?

********

Walking as fast as he could on the icy cold floor in his bare feet, wearing nothing but a hospital gown, Corporal Damon Baird was marching across the hospital hallway with a nurse frantically following behind, trying to somewhat restrain the defiant Corporal from exiting the premises.

"Sir…Corporal…Doctor's orders demands that you remain in bed…"

"Screw that, I don't need anymore rest," Baird growled as he continued to march over to the infirmary desk, hoping to find his belongings somewhere in the locker storage area.

With Raven still separated from the others, he attempted to go see her shortly after he woke up that morning, but for whatever reason, her room was heavily guarded and no one was allowed inside, other than the "Reverend Mother" and Colonel Hoffman, which consequently pissed him off to no end.

Brushing along the other nurses and patients that happened to be in his way, he meandered through the crowd, not the least bit conscientious about walking around in a partially opened gown, exposing the backside of his bare body. The only thing that he did have that was his, was his COG tags and Raven's necklace, which surprised him that the hospital didn't confiscate that.

"C'mon, c'mon…move your ass, let's go," Baird sneered, pushing along as he finally reached the front desk to the infirmary.

"Soldier, you have not been released yet…you're not leaving," the nurse yelled out from behind a crowd of patients.

"Watch me, sweetheart," he yelled back over his shoulder and turned his attention back to the lady behind the desk.

"Corporal Baird, id number 638941…I need my armor and packs," Baird requested.

"Do you have a release form, sir?"

"Ma'am, this is a matter concerning a crises, stating code 163…"

"Sir, the Block is not under attack…"

"Well, DUH…not yet…and there won't be if you let me get my crap so I can go over to command…

"Well then sir, you need to fill out the form…"

"I don't have to time to be filling out some f***ing form, just…"

"Sir, don't make me have to call security…"

"I am the security, damnit," Baird yells out as he looks over his shoulder and notices the nurse coming towards him.

"Sir, you get back to your room this instant!"

Suddenly a shout is heard through the hallway as another patient runs amuck in the hallway.

"Get outta my way…BAIRD…YOU THERE?"

Baird looks up over the crowd to find Cole moving from down the same hallway, while holding his gown together with one hand and carrying his I.V. stand in the other, using it to shoo the security guards trying to restrain him.

"HEY…COLE," Baird yelled, waving his hands as the nurse grabs him by his arm, holding a syringe in her other hand.

"You're coming with me…"

"Like hell I am," Baird sneered as he grabs the syringe from her hand and jabs it into the wall. He thrusts the syringe to the side, breaking the needle that was impaled into the sheetrock.

"Move…get the f*** outta my way," Cole bellowed, pushing through with a couple of security guards trying to restrain the Cole Train in vain.

Baird turns back over to the front desk as the lady picks up the phone calling for additional security.

"Oh, f*** this," Baird growled as he pulls off his gown in front of the desk lady. The woman gawks at him in shock as she drops the phone while Baird grabs his tags and hops over the desk onto the other side in the buff.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Baird scoffed as he pushes her chair over and reaches down into the file cabinet, looking through a series of assigned patient locker assignments.

"Hey…I found where they're keeping your s*** Cole," Baird yells as he rummages through the files, until he finds his, "..aha, there you are."

Baird looks up and notices that Cole was able to make it to the desk,

"Man, we need to get movin, before they sick the whole base on us," Cole ranted before he got a full glimpse of Baird's lack of modesty, "…s***, man, you naked, again?" Cole chuckled while Baird quickly grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist.

"There, is that better?" Baird replied sarcastically.

Suddenly, the sound of the entry doors being kicked open was heard from down the hall. Cole and Baird peered over the crowd as a wave of Gears marched into the hospital.

"Oh, crap!" Baird blurted out while Cole scoffed,

"Uh huh…that's what I'm talking about…c'mon, we can take them on…"

"Not when they're armed with tasers, Cole…c'mon, this way!"

Baird pushes through a back door that lead into the storage area of the infirmary, with Cole following closely behind. As the door shuts behind them, Cole turns around and rips the door handle off, throwing it to the wayside.

"That should keep them busy for a little while," said Cole. The two walk over into another door that leads to a room filled with storage lockers. Shutting another door behind them, Baird quickly starts to analyze the number sequences on the locker doors.

"Ok…this is section B…but we need to go to section K, so," Baird moved further into the room, looking for their locker assignments. Cole followed close behind, looking out for a specific locker number.

"What's my number again?"

"You're K098…mine is K094…" Baird responded while trying to hold his towel in place that was wrapped around his waist, "…c'mon…I need my clothes."

"What about Vinny's?"

"I couldn't find his…we need to get our s*** and go! We don't have a lot of time," Baird said frantically as he rummaged in the file, looking for a key, "...hey, I found it!"

Baird announced before pulling out two keys.

"Here…catch," says Baird as he tosses a key to Cole, "…I think your locker is right there."

Baird points over top his left, while Cole moves around Baird, looking for his assigned locker.

"Oh yea…I see it."

Fidgeting with the lock, Baird manages to get his open and starts to rummage through his fatigues, packs and ammo packs, cussing in between phrases.

"F***…where's my underwear?"

"Ah man, you going to wear your soiled underwear again?" Cole griped.

"Shut up, Cole…"

Cole chuckled, "Nah, I take that back…they probably burned that sucker in the bio-hazard room, hehe."

Cole starts to laugh while Baird flashes him the middle finger.

"C'mon…it's got to be here somewhere," Baird looks frantically until a loud thud is heard from the other room.

"Oh, s***," Cole blurted out, "I think they managed to open the door."

Cole quickly put on his fatigues and then hastily puts on his boots. Baird does the same as he continues to frantically look for his journal pack.

"S***, I can't find it," he griped.

"Find what?"

"The pack I use to keep my journal in…I also kept Raven's journal in it too."

"Wait…it's the one with the map, right?"

The noise from the other room begins to become more audible as the two gather their stuff and move quickly towards the emergency exit.

"Yea, it is," Baird blurts out as he tinkers with the door handle while pushing against the door with his hips.

"What the hell…open up, damnit," he griped.

Suddenly the door whipped open, causing Baird to fall down on the icy cold floor as Cole peers out past the door, noticing a couple of Gears waiting for them just outside the door. A voice rang out from behind the line of Gears,

"Damnit Baird! I told you to get some rest…that was an order, soldier, not a f***ing request."

"I don't need rest…sir!" Baird sneered as he slowly looked up from the floor, somewhat still disorientated from the sedation from the night before. He could see Sergeant Fenix looking down at him, scowling, s***, he's always scowling at me…asshole!

Marcus looked back up at Cole, whom was starting to back off from the door. They could hear the other security personnel make their way into the locker room from behind.

"With all due respect sir, but command needs to let us in on all of dis," Cole tried to explain, "there's a lot that we discovered out there that command doesn't know about."

"That's why I'm here, Gus," said Marcus as he raised his hand to the security personnel, signaling them to back off.

Baird groaned from the floor,

"Well then what the hell took you so long?" Baird griped as Marcus looked back down, giving Baird an amusing smirk,

"Cause I wanted to see if you would actually run around the infirmary bare ass!"

********

Inside a consol room, Hoffman sat in a chair, waiting patiently as Lt. Stroud continued to run through the database on her computer, searching what was left of Jacinto's archive while Sergeant Mataki and Captain Miller waited along with Hoffman as noise from the hallway could be heard from the room. The three turned their attention to the door as the all, too familiar voices became more audible.

"Deary me…I can hear that Blondie is alive and well," Bernie snorted as Baird's ranting could be heard from the hallway, following Marcus'. Miller chuckled at the Sergeant's comment while Marcus walks through the doorway, followed by Cole, Baird, and Sven as they walk into the room with puzzled expressions. The three were already in freshly cleaned fatigues after a brief, lukewarm shower that didn't make the mood anymore compromising, but they were there, anticipating the next move as the events that they have stumbled upon the day before was still fresh in mind.

"Gentlemen…attention," Hoffman barked as the room quickly went silent with the officers standing in formation with a salute. Baird slowly raised his hand as he let out a sigh while Marcus groaned at Baird's lack of regard.

"At ease, men…" Hoffman huffed as he freed his men from the formalities, "…and before I even begin, will you please, Corporal, get that piece of s*** to stabilize?"

Hoffman pointed to an computer screen that was blinking on and off between modes. Without hesitation, Baird takes off his glove and bangs the side of the monitor with his fist, resulting in the screen switching back to "on" mode, permanently. By now, Baird's reputation as an expert mechanic has preceded him wherever he went, and command was no exception.

"Thank you," Hoffman derided, "…now if you could, please sit there Corporal, there's something I want to show you boys."

Baird took a seat in front of the monitor as he adjusts the pixels on the screen. Cole takes a seat next to him while Sven looks over the two, next to Marcus.

"Lieutenant, can you pull up the information we looked up from earlier?" said Hoffman.

"It should already be up, Colonel…Corporal?"

"Ok…I see a medical journal on computer screen, so what," Baird sneered as Marcus flicked Baird in the back of his head,

"Just read the article on the screen, dips***," Marcus sneered.

"Alright, alright…geez…" said Baird as he lets out a sigh, peering into the uploaded article that Anya was researching earlier. Baird quickly scanned the article, noticing that it was an psychoanalysis profile of some of the soldiers stationed on the Tyrus border. He scanned down as he noticed an alarming inventory of a particular antidepressant that was used on a trial-base for the Gears stationed there.

"Son of a…" Baird mumbled while Cole peered over into the blurring print but was able to decipher some the articles findings.

"What…Exlin? I thought that s*** was unstable, ya know…causing people to go loopy," Cole blurted out loud while Miller continued,

"Yea, it was initially taken off the market as a flawed product, once the staff realized the risky side effects..."

"Apparently, when times were getting hard, the medics started to ransack local pharmacies and most of it wasn't taken off the shelf quite yet," Hoffman responded.

"So what's this got to do with our present situation?" asked Marcus.

"Because, according to this, the Gears that were under it's influence started to break down…s***, this medication was a huge backfire to begin with, mixing the wrong neurotransmitters all at once…" Baird started to rant, "…and unfortunately, the leader of this militia, who took out over, God knows, how many COG outposts and Gear squads, was a prime candidate for the company that was testing this crap. No wonder this guy is a loose canon…what the hell were these people thinking?"

"…and this is the same asshole who took out Gamma, and probably all the other squads that are still unaccounted for," Cole added.

"But how can one Stranded manage to organize a militia of this magnitude?" asked Anya.

"He was a Gear," Marcus corrected her, "…and according to the registry, he was a Sergeant stationed in Ephyra until shortly after E-day, where he and his men were relocated to the border."

"Sergeant Milliardo Morose," Hoffman muttered, "…was a tough SOB, and an prickly one to boot…he managed to survive the Hammer Assault when he and his men were caught in it's crossfire while they were relocating the citizen's back into the safe zone."

"How in the hell did he manage to do that?" Marcus sneered.

"Like the Colonel said, he's a resilient soldier, but it wasn't without repercussions," Bernie added.

"Morose, along with several others, was deemed mentally unfit to stay as a soldier and was relocated to the psychiatry ward for incarceration," Hoffman continued.

"I bet that really pissed him off," Marcus added, knowing full well the experience of being incarcerated, [I]but a psycho ward, I bet that was even more insulting.[/I]

"He has since been relocated to several institutions, but ended up missing shortly after an attempted transfer when the Locusts attacked the facility," said Hoffman.

"...so you knew that he was running loose," Marcus sneered.

"We had no idea if he was even alive...but at that point, he was the least of our concerns."

"Well, he's priority on our list now, especially if he's accumulated weapons and supplies" said Marcus.

"...but what makes him even more dangerous is that he is familiar with Gear tactics, protocol, and is for the most part, bloody intelligent," Bernie added, "...the fact that he managed to tear down our defense posts, one at a time without evidence and then managed to block out our satellites from detecting their whereabouts should be proof enough."

"Yea, well, for someone who's supposed to be smart, he didn't count on the Feral, Granny," Baird butted in, "…and for the most part, Rav managed to keep us alive and away from the militia's scouts, not to mention that she figured out that the whole damn mission was set-up."

"Well as far as your little Birdie is concerned, apparently no one counted on her to be anywhere, much less the militia, or the Gears for that matter," Bernie retorted.

"What are you talking about?' Baird turned over to the Sergeant as she continued,

"Well, apparently, your Birdie friend managed to not only hack into the Jacinto mainframe, she managed to break down the archive firewall, accessing all sorts of collected data concerning the Plantire compound, Hurl Dam, and other schematics of the entire valley, within a period of six months…more schematics than what our surveyors were able to put together in five years!"

"Well, s***…when was she going to tell us about all dis?" Cole griped.

"She probably didn't want to leak any of it out…no offense Cole, but you couldn't keep a secret if you were paid in rations, chicks and beer," Baird responded as he turned back to Bernie, "…and how'd the hell you know about Rav's infiltration?"

"She's got a juvie record concerning "database infiltration" in the system, but her profile has since been listed under the missing persons obituaries, so it was understood at the time that she was inactive. The only time that security records can recall a break-in from an outside source was just recently within the past five years, but we started to put the pieces together, ever since your little Birdie suddenly showed up at the front door after thirteen years, marauding with a pack of malicious mares," Bernie mused as she continued, "…bet you didn't know that, didya Blondie!"

"Oh, well gee, since I haven't had access to a computer all week because I was out in the wilderness, trying to focus on more important things, like STAYING ALIVE…and far as Raven is concerned, I haven't been able to get any more intel out of her because SOMEBODY had me sedated for rest of the day when I needed to access that very intel before Morose relocates his militia…which I'm willing to bet he's doing right now as we speak!"

"How do you figure that, Baird?" Marcus questioned.

"He now knows that we know, where they are located and amassing, and if he's as tactical as you say he is, then I'm willing to bet he probably expects us to launch a massive offensive, while he and his militia are making preparations to counter strike…s***, I would."

"Baird's right…" Cole jumped in, "…and we're just sitting here wasting time while they're preparing their next move!"

"They also may have additional working vehicles and a s***load of weapons that they have taken from their prisoners," Sven added.

"We need to act now before they get away again, or even worse, launch an attack against the Block!" said Baird.

"Which is why I had you three brought in here," said Colonel Hoffman, "we have just received some crucial intel that will remedy the errors we made earlier."

"And how did you figure that, sir?" Baird scoffed. Shortly after Baird's coarse comment, Marcus pulled out a journal and slapped it on the desk next to the keyboard. Baird quickly noticed that it was Raven's and started to slump in his chair,

"Oh..." he mumbled.

"Did you really think McNight was the only one who caught on to the mutiny, D?" Miller mused.

"Say what?" Baird responded with interest.

"The Feral have only recently engaged into a civil war," Miller continued, "…according to their "Reverend Mother," Poroux, apparently the Feral are in dispute as to whether to side with the COG against the Locust uprising they believe is still a threat to what is left of humanity."

"Yea, well apparently, some of them sided with the Stranded militia," Baird sneered, "and as a result, our objective was exposed and the mission was a near, epic fail!"

"Which is why arrangements are being made," said Miller.

"…and you three are going back out with Delta and Epsilon," Hoffman added as he stood up from his chair, "…we're going to put an end to those sons of b****es once and for all, starting with a drop-off offensive."

"Wait, are we literally repeating what we did earlier? Who's backing us up?" Baird griped.

Hoffman removed his hat as he gave Baird a menacing glare, looking at Baird directly in the eye,

"That, son, is going to be my little surprise."

Intermission VII

This all leads up to the finale. The next chapter may take longer to edit since it has alot more depth, but hopefully it will be worth the read when I get it done...

...otherwise, your input on this one is welcome. This one was difficult getting the dialogue right since there was seven people in one place, while trying to keep the information that was being "exchanged" on par, complimenting one after another...trying to keep the conversation natural and flowing at the same time can be a difficult task.

[Razor605]

That's right burn 'em stranded with blue flames!!!!!

Can't wait to read the rest Jonesy. The reason I don't review is because I read for amusement and not for picking off small errors.

[Jonesybites]

Yea, but I need the picking off on any errors, cause nothing is more aggravating than after spending countless read-overs, and I still have a error (can anyone relate to this?)...anytime anyone points it out, I go back and fix it for future readers...I'm not offended and I'll admit it, I'm a pretty bad typist. Give it time, you'll notice, if you haven't already, I type "the" like "teh" or "from" like "form,"...it's a real bad habit I subconsciously fell into unfortunately...and I even typed this stupid post in Word just so I can spell "subconsciously" right, LOL.

I had a Beta reader at one time to do that job for me, but he/she fell on the wayside, so I'm having to do it myself, which is laughable cause everyone knows that you really can't fully edit your own work...you need a fresh pair of eyes, which is why I'll point it out on everyone else's work. It's not to meant to be demeaning, it's just trying to make it better. Nobody wants to be known as the writer with cr@ppy spelling errors, or that guy/gal with really lame grammar,

[SKORGE]

Who's backing them up!? The Feral?! Or.... or soldiers trained to wipe scum like the Stranded?! Is it the Blackwatch!? Oh my god, die, die, die! Maroose belongs in a noose, see what I did thurr?

Looking forward to reading more.

[Jonesybites]

But it's Hoffmann's little secret...I can't upset the Hoff!

[SKORGE]

But it's Hoffmann's little secret...I can't upset the Hoff!

Goddamn grouch! Morose better die a horrible death, give me a empty syringe and Morose in a steel room Stab the bastard in the eyes and then break the needle in his neck!.

[Razor605]

^ What that's it?

I would say, you're "Green as grass" by looking at that comment!

Like one of my favorite characters, Rorschach, said: "Men, get arrested. Dogs, get put down!"

We need a dull knife and a zip-tie, like the one he used on Raven, and lets work from there.

[SKORGE]

^ What that's it?

I would say, you're "Green as grass" by looking at that comment!

Like one of my favorite characters, Rorschach, said: "Men, get arrested. Dogs, get put down!"

We need a dull knife and a zip-tie, like the one he used on Raven, and lets work from there.

I see what you did there!

As long as I get to inflict most of the pain on the damn bastard, then I'll be happy, and for the hell of it, let's get a bear to rape him!

[Razor605]

Okeeeey. I'm just gonna go now!

[SKORGE]

Okeeeey. I'm just gonna go now!

Oh come on, that would add so much confusion and torture to the guy, he won't be ol' Stranded gang-lord Morose anymore, but a fool who was a bear-toy, all....night....long!

I hate stranded...

Don't tell me your a stranded sympathizer!

[iReclaim]

Jesus christ dude...That's a long ass FF. Nice, I don't personally like reading FF but anything 37 chapters long deserves a round of applause.

[Razor605]

Yeah...SHE's not a dude.

Well if you think about it, everybody is a dude! He's a dude, she's a dude, "Your wife just had a baby, sir. Who is it, doctor? (sigh)It's...a dude."

Ah...I'll be quite now.

[Jonesybites]

Jesus christ dude...That's a long ass FF. Nice, I don't personally like reading FF but anything 37 chapters long deserves a round of applause.

Yea, Jesus Christ is da bomb...but holy cow, my golden calf is being read, hallelujah! Seriously, how long did it take you to read it?

Maybe I need to put up a poll, lol.

Nobody reads the profiles, but even if they did, not all of them are gender specific...I thought my gamer tag would be a clue, but...I'm just that "dude" with the "funky mushroom" avatar, lol,

...and then I got high. Cr@p...I need to change my avatar.

[Jonesybites]

Cool, they got some new avatars...I call dibs on this one!

[Jonesybites]

Intermission VII

Men on horseback meandered through the forest that surrounded the roadside between Plantire and Fort Block. As the snow fell lightly, the horses huffed in the cold bitter air while they lifted their heads to a snow-buried vehicle, just ahead, lying lifeless in a ditch.

"Over here, we found S***piece!" one of the Stranded yelled out.

Two other men on horseback, galloped over to the dead APC, looking around the vehicle to find the entry.

"Open it up…" Sanders ordered. One of the Stranded dismounted from his horse and started to brush off the snow that accumulated on the vehicle from a winter storm the day before. He takes his shovel from his pack and bangs the ice that was frozen around the door handle, shattering the ice into chunks.

He leans over and lifts the handle, opening the door as it creaked slowly from sitting idle in the frozen storm. He peered in, only find it empty and rummaged through, with some of the electrical components severed.

"Agh, damnit…they cut the wiring to the ignition!"

"F***…clever bastards," Sanders sneered.

Suddenly, another on horseback began to join the group of five,

"I told you they wouldn't leave S***piece in drivable condition…these Gears aren't that f***ing stupid," Morose sneered as he pulls out his cellphone and texts another platoon nearby.

"Are the COG planning a counter offensive?" Sanders reiterated while Morose huffed into the cool air, looking up at his right-hand man from sitting on his horse,

"According to the latest transmission, they'll be doing drops along the plains near the lake," Morose answered as another Dill came driving up near their location on the road, "…and we're down to one APC...with no working turret."

"Squad D is in position," Sanders announced after reading his own text message.

"So is G," Morose confirmed after reading the returned text message, "and it looks like the pigs will be unleashed near the Plantire complex…fascist bastards…I was wrong, maybe they are f***ing stupid."

Suddenly, one of the Stranded scouts came running up to the group,

"Sir, sir, squad H has contact," he said frantically.

"What?" Morose growled as he shifted in the saddle while his horse turned around to face the Stranded.

"I don't know how, but they were discovered."

Sanders looked back at his cellphone as another text message comes in,

"S***, Mills…"

"Now what?"

"Squad D is under attack…by a Gear squad…"

"Impossible, they couldn't have discovered the location of our jammer," he stammered as he moved his horse out into the open.

The noise of gunfire could be heard in the distance, coming from the east. He then noticed the King Ravens that were once moving north, have changed their course.

"Son of a b****, they've somehow reestablished radio contact!" Sanders griped.

"That would be a forgone conclusion, Sergeant," Morose reiterated,

"…and it looks like the Ravens won't be hanging out here for too long," Sanders added as they looked into the dark sky ahead.

"Why wouldn't they, sir?' one of the Stranded asked

"That snow is going to make visibility problematical for their Birds," Morose responded as he turned his attention to Sanders.

"Get the other squadrons towards the forest near the valley. Unleash Nessus…it can change the tide in our favor," Morose ordered.

"We can't take all of those Gears out, especially in the cover of the forests," one of the Stranded remarked.

"We won't have to...all we have to do is cut them off just long enough," Morose sneered,

"What of the other squadrons…and the Gears that attacked them?" Sanders questioned.

"We at least know where they are, but it's not the Gears that I'm f***ing worried about…"

Morose looked back up at the dark, menacing horizon in the distance as the clock starts to count down.

Chapter 38: The Battle in Glacier Valley

And the fun begins here...

[SKORGE]

Dammit Jonesy, how dare you leave me with a cliffhanger! Someone do something now! Damn you, you got me, such a short piece but such a good one! Now woman, move away, now, now!

Demanding asshole demands it!

[TheRealBigBoss]

Jeez... I'm only on like chapter sixteen or something...

Nothing major to point out, some minor grammar errors and some word usage I personally found odd, but since no one else has pointed it out, it might be just me. Lol, I did notice you called Dominic, Dominique, which was kinda funny.

Anyways, liking it so far, the stranded insurgents are interesting. Hopefully they won't be too similar to mine. None of them are called Sadie, Duke, Shackler or D by any chance? Cause... that would kinda suck.