>>2943488
[2/2]

“In short, ladies and gentlemen, what we have here is a turkey shoot in the making. Your Officers will brief you in detail.” General Forsythe nods to the Colonel, who steps up to the stage and pulls out a PDA to begin reading off notes. General Forsythe steps to the side to allow him to make his presentation.

“The order of battle shall be as follows. The 60th Regiment of Infantry shall deploy as part of the first wave, with Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie companies taking the spearhead into enemy territory towards this city which will serve as our central hub on our way to their capitol…”

A turkey shoot in the making, huh?

…

…

A bump in the road forces your eyes open from your long needed nap. Goddamn. You sit up from the crowded bed of the Land Rover then look over. The sun was beginning to set over the trees as Morrison drives the Land Rover across rough terrain slowly but carefully. Graves keeps the map in her lap, navigating for him. Around you, Tierney was manning the gun while Tombs and Nielson sat around, lazily, idly.

You pull yourself up closer to the front seats. “Graves,” you call. She looks back, her eyes looking incredibly tired and sleepy. “How close are we to the swamp?”

She sighs, rubbing at her eyelids. She takes another look at the map then says, “Definitely not close enough to make it there before dark.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to keep moving in the dark,” says Morrison. He keeps his eyes forward, his hands tightly gripping the wheel as he keeps the Land Rover on course. “We’re probably going to be the loudest thing in the dark. It might be a better idea to look for a place to set up camp or something.”

“We set up camp, we might get rushed by something in the dark,” says Graves.

“What, we can’t like set up a fire or something?” Morrison asks.

Graves gives him a very incredulous glare. “Oh, let me just set up a fire in the middle of the woods. Maybe the Lizards can’t see fire from miles away like we can.” She leans close, almost up to his ear. “-OH WAIT.-” Morrison gives her a very intense glare back, clearly not appreciating her snippiness.

> “Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere.”
> “We keep moving. Sooner we get to Cope and Hill 47, the better.”
> “How about we take a vote? We’re all Privates here.” (Vote for what you want.)
> Other

Leaving this up overnight as usual. Will post the update soon as I get home from work tomorrow.

>>2943490
> “Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere.”
We can just bug out if it looks like trouble is coming.

>>2943490
>“Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere.”

>>2943668
Supporting
We don't even need a fire though? We could huddle for warmth and eat cold C-Rations

Also, welcome back QM! What happened last week man, I was looking forward to it!

>>2943490
> “We keep moving. Sooner we get to Cope and Hill 47, the better.”
take turns and drive slower.

>>2943490
>“Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere.”

>>2943488
>> “Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere.”
Welcome back

>>2943490
>> “Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark somewhere."

Writing update now.

>>2943717
I was busy with things.

> “Setting up camp might be our best option. I’d rather not risk the Land Rover getting stuck in the dark

“Setting up camp is our best option I think. I’d rather not risk getting the Land Rover stuck in the dark or being ambushed while we’re driving. We can always bug out if something stumbles on us anyway.” Morrison nods, turning the wheel to get the Land Rover off the beaten path and somewhere safe. “Find us some place defensible for the night.” Graves leans back in her seat, sighing a bit in relief. Truth be told, you’d like the opportunity to just lie down on something soft rather than be in the bed of this Land Rover. Not much room in the back given you have Tombs, Tierney, Nielson, and yourself back here, not to mention all the supplies too. A bit of an opportunity to stretch your legs you suppose.

Morrison finds a spot next to what appears to be a large stone wall, ruins of some kind you suppose. You didn’t think the Lizards had any kind of precursors, much less ones that would actually be intelligent. But he parks up the side against the wall then hops out. Graves too hops out, as does everyone else. Nielson tries stretching his arms before flinching in pain. Tombs quickly moves to support him, helping him to sit down by the tire. “Right,” says Morrison. He pops open a C-Ration then takes a wet wipe from it. “First thing’s first. I think we’re pretty secure. I’d say a wiping’s in order.”

“Agreed,” says Graves. “My cunt’s probably a sewer right now.”

“Implying it isn’t always,” Morrison mutters. Graves glares at him then takes out her own wet wipes too. Not a bad idea honestly, you’ve shaken your pursuers. May as well get the scent of effort, grit, and fear off your skin. The stronger your musk, the easier you are to track after all. You take the wet wipes from a C-Ration then unbuckle your chestplate and your arm plates and greaves. Everyone starts stripping down to get at their sweaty bodies.

Everyone except Tierney. You look at her. She flinches, grabbing a rifle as she smiles nervously. “Um, I’ll uh- I’ll take watch. Make sure nobody sneaks up on us while we do our thing. Hehe!” You stare back at her. She’s only eighteen and she’s a conscript if you recall. She’s definitely not used to stripping down around men.

[1/2]

>>2945001
[2/2]

Graves stares at her, having already gone down to her undershirt. “Tierney, are you shy?” Tierney glances away, biting her lip as a blush creeps up on her cheeks. Graves sighs in frustration then walks over and takes Tierney by the shoulders. “I’ll go help her.”

“Don’t go too far,” you say. Graves points to the bushes nearby then pushes Tierney forward into them.

Morrison smirks, then looks at you. “You know Tierney wants you, right?” Eh? You look at him. The hell was that? “I’ve seen the way she looks at you. Hell, if I were a woman and I were rescued by you, I’d want to bone you too.” He snickers. "Goddamn, you're beautiful, boss. Take me in your arms right now and just ravage me!"

Nielson wipes beneath his chin, glancing up at Morrison idly. “Aren’t you the same guy that married an alien?” Morrison gives him the finger in response, not amused. “Just saying.” Tombs quietly washes himself, his jacket around his waist as he soaks off the blood from his cheeks and skin.

> “Being trapped on a planet full of man-eating Lizards isn’t exactly the best place to have sex, Morrison.”
> “I mean, fine. That’s her opinion I guess. I’m not gonna push it.”
> “You really think so?”
> Take a carbine and secure the perimeter. You’re not going to involve yourself in this discussion.
> Other

>>2945006
>“I mean, fine. That’s her opinion I guess. I’m not gonna push it.”

>>2945006
>> Take a carbine and secure the perimeter. You’re not going to involve yourself in this discussion.

>>2945006
>Other
>"I think it's because I'm the only man in this group."
Crack a joke, release some tension.
Also how old are we?
And is Tierney black

>>2945208
The MC is 22 according to the archives which I keep forgetting to link.

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?searchall=no+one+gets+left+behind

Also she's brown. People from Madrigal have their roots in hispanic settlers.

>>2945006
>> Take a carbine and secure the perimeter. You’re not going to involve yourself in this discussion.

Just no.

> Take a carbine and secure the perimeter. You’re not going to involve yourself in this discussion.

Yeah, nope. Not getting into a discussion like this. It’s one thing to go after a woman in circumstances she chooses, it’s another thing to go after women –while trapped on a planet full of man-eating, railgun toting, intelligent Lizards-. Time and place for everything. You grab your Carbine and charge it then march off into the woods. Nielson looks at Morrison. “You just had to say it.”

“What?” asks Morrison. “How old are you, eighteen?” Nielson nods, glumly. “You ever been with a woman?” Nielson reluctantly shakes his head, looking away. “Thought so. Tombs, what about you?” Tombs simply turns his head to glare at Morrison. “… Alright then, Tombs.” Morrison grabs a rifle and moves to sit on top of the hood of the Land Rover.

Ugh, some peace and quiet. You rub your neck with the wet wipe and let the cool cleansing liquids soak away your dried sweat and whatever muck is resting on the skin. Fun thing about wet wipes in your C-Rations is that you can completely clean yourself thoroughly with just one. Idea is to keep the soldiers clean as a while when possible on other planets so they don’t bring back any foreign diseases or parasites. Of course, most use wet wipes for other things but given they come in C-Rations, they’re relatively plentiful things. No one gives a damn how they’re used, just so long as once they’re used they’re disposed of neatly. And if you’re really lucky, your disposed-of wet wipes here will throw off the scent when the Raptors come chasing your tail.

That’s no ideal thought. You know they’re coming. They’re not likely to give up, not after what you did to a Rex.

You circle around, far enough away that you can only make out idle chatter from back at the Land Rover but not close enough to hear what they’re saying. As you walk, you sling the carbine then rip off the cap of your C-Ration dinner portion. Mac and cheese. Cold mac and cheese. You grab the spoon and start eating as you march. It doesn’t taste great when cold, but heating up a C-Ration might let the scent carry downwind. If a Rex catches it, you’re boned. You simply let the mushy cheese and bland macaroni melt in your mouth as you chew. Could use some seasoning.

You stop up then grimace as you take another bite. After a short walk around, there’s no animals or any Lizards in sight. You turn and MOTHER OF MERCY TOMBS.

[1/2]

>>2945295
[2/2]

He stands there, apparently having snuck up on you. “Did I scare you?” Tombs looks at you blankly, rubbing at his wrists. His sleeves were now rolled up, with his bracers strapped now around his bare forearms.

“No, no.” He actually did. How did he just sneak up on you like that? Good Christ, he missed his calling, he should’ve been a scout like you. You take a breath and see the rifle slung around his arm. Good thing he didn’t come out here unarmed. “Come to walk the perimeter with me?”

He nods. “I figure we gotta buddy up,” he remarks. “Don’t want us disappearing one by one.” Fair point. You nod, going back to walking. He steps alongside you, staring ahead.

“So you doing alright?” you ask, looking back at him.

He nods, slowly. “Um. Yeah.”

“You sure?” You stop, looking him dead in the eyes. He seems distracted, not entirely there even. But he nods again, brushing at his arm. “I don’t mean to make trouble with you, Tombs. I know what happened was… disturbing.”

“Yeah.” He glances briefly at the ground, pulling at the strap holding the rifle. “I’m… I’m alright. I’m just glad to be around people again I guess. But um…” He rubs at his neck, his eye twitching a little. “I’m a medic, boss. It’s my job to save people and all that.” He motions to Morrison and Nielson vaguely before looking back at you. “I’ll help them, yeah. But… the people on that Medevac I was on. Um.” His cheek twitches a bit more.

> “Look, I’m not the guy you should be talking to about this. Ask Graves.”
> “It’s not your fault. If anything, you tried to make sure they didn’t feel anything when they died.”
> “I would’ve tried to defend them. Even if it meant dying.”
> Other

>>2945299
>Look, I’m not the guy you should be talking to about this. Ask Graves.”
But if it means anything
>> “It’s not your fault. If anything, you tried to make sure they didn’t feel anything when they died.”

Or we could try going the whole "You messed up, learn from it and move on"

>>2945299
>“It’s not your fault. If anything, you tried to make sure they didn’t feel anything when they died.”

>>2945299
> Other
Its a tuff choice, most of us were boned anyways landing on this planet. No one should have to be forced to make that kinda decision you had to make, but you did it not out of malice or anything but as the best possible outcome for the men under your care.

I'm not trying to condone or support what you did, but I can try to understand as best as I can from someone who wasn't even there.

> “It’s not your fault. If anything, you tried to make sure they didn’t feel anything when they died.”

“It’s not your fault,” you say. Tombs looks at you, paying you close attention, almost too close attention. “Look, I mean… if anything you tried to ease their pain before they died. It was a really shitty choice. And given what I know, I can’t say it was the wrong decision but I can’t say it was the decision I would’ve made. So.” You sigh, then shrug. “Tombs, you can’t carry that forever. Alright?”

His lip quivers a little as he nods. “Y-… yeah.” He nods again. “Yeah, alright.”

“Good,” you say. Truth be told, Tombs is actually quite scary. The way he just snuck up on you right there, not to mention his mental state. You’re not going to say he’s a complete Section 8 but you’re not going to treat him lightly either. For the most part, he seems pretty stable. He looks back towards the Land Rover. “Well, I think we’ve done enough walking. Seems this place is secure. Wanna head back?” He nods, allowing you to take point.

Actually. You nod to the Land Rover. You let him take point. He goes walking, his hand on his rifle sling. Keep him in view if at all possible.

When you arrive back at the Land Rover, you find Morrison lying back on the hood, using his folded up jacket as a pillow for his head. Nielson sits against the tire, munching on his C-Ration. In the time you were patrolling, Tierney and Graves have returned too, squeaky clean it seems like everyone else. Tierney squats down besides Nielson while Graves sits up in the passenger seat again. Things are quiet. For good reason. Nobody wants to be the guy who accidentally calls in Raptors just from trying to chit-chat.

But you dispel it quickly. “Perimeter’s secure,” you say. “I think we’re good for the night.”

“Great.” Morrison yawns, tenting his hands on his chest. “I might be able to catch some shut-eye then.” He looks up and sees Graves’ feet on the dashboard as she starts eating a cold C-Ration. “Graves, I don’t suppose you could be quiet for more than five minutes can you?”

Graves responds with, “I will when you will.”

Morrison grunts. “Fair.”

Tierney looks up at everyone. “Is it going to be cold at night?” she asks. “I mean, this is the first time we’re sleeping outside the prefab so…”

Morrison says, “This zone gets a little bit of everything. Weather gets crazy. Definitely gets a little cold at night though.” You sit down next to Tierney by the step into the back. Tombs as well sits his butt down next to Nielson. “Once we’re in the swamp though, it’s going to be humid and it’s going to be hot. So be prepared to run short sleeves and light gear.” He turns over, leaning over to look at Tierney. “And you should know about hot climates anyway, you live in a city, right?”

[1/2]

>>2945734
Tierney shrugs, looking at the ground. “Hab blocks can get really hot due to the residual heat from all the people living inside of it at one time, not to mention all the electronics use and all the utilities and everything. We didn’t get rain either because super huge cities means weather just kind of stops being a thing after a while, the planetary officials put a stop to random chance after all. So really it was just plain stinking hot. I knew a couple of people growing up who’d been hospitalized because they’d be dehydrated just standing outside for a few hours.” She rubs at her chin, now apparently reminiscing. “I remember we used to get excited when the hydrants exploded. People would scramble just to get at the water. Even if it was rusty water. It was cold. That’s what mattered.”

Morrison looks a little disgusted by that. Even you have to admit that’s not a great way to live. “What about air conditioning?” he asks.

Tierney frowns a little. “Nobody can afford air conditioning.” She looks at Nielson, then at you. “Truth be told, I’m jealous of you guys.” Nielson looks over, surprised. Wait. She’s jealous of you? For what? “I hear there’s lots of space on Hopewell. Plenty of room to move around.” She smiles at you. “And you can own acres of land! You know, my family only owns like several square meters. But you guys can have whole kilometers!”

Nielson smirks, leaning away. “Eh… I mean.” Tierney looks over, confused.

> “Just because we have lots of land doesn’t mean we know what to do with it.”
> “Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”
> “Farm planets are overrated. I’ve always wanted to go to the city.”
> Other

>>2945754
> “Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”

>>2945754
> “Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”

>>2945754
>> “Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”
Good to see you back

>>2945754
>“Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”

> “Yeah, Hopewell’s a really pretty place. Can’t wait to go back.”

“Yeah, Hopewell is a really pretty place. Lot of open land, clear blue sky, and animals roaming free.” You rest your head back against the Land Rover’s side. “Can’t wait to go back.” You’ll take being at home with your Dad over being here at any rate. Just the idea that you’ll be safe and sound rather than having to constantly fight for your life is an incredibly juicy prospect. “Of course, I still have two years on my enlistment but I still can’t wait.”

Nielson grabs Tierney’s shoulder, making her flinch lightly. “Hell, maybe we can take you there, Tierney. Show you the sights. There are reserves out there where you can see some of Earth’s original animals too.”

“Yeah, I heard about those!” She gasps, then a sudden look of excitement on her face gleams. “You think I could ride a horse!?” Nielson nods. “Oh, that’d be great! Of course, we still have to get off this planet and then we have to get through our conscription but… yeah, if I could, I would! I mean one of the best parts of conscription if there’s any is that I got to leave New Madrigal.”

“That bad of a place to live?” you ask.

“It’s not that bad,” she says. “It’s just… I want space and fresh air. A place to grow you know?” Fair enough. Truth be told, this is the most excited you’ve seen Tierney in a while. She actually looks happy for once talking about this. Giving her a reason to suffer through this is probably getting through to her. And hopefully it’ll drive her to fight harder out there. “You know. If I ever get myself hat much space, I don’t think I’d know what to do with myself.”

Nielson says, “I’d probably go back to working on tractors. It’s steady pay. Plus, I love the work too. It’s not too hard, not too easy. Always a challenge every day. Keeps you active.”

“Yeah, I know what I’m going to do what I’m get back…” Morrison mutters.

“Is it put another baby in your catgirl wife?” asks Graves.

[1/2]

>>2945947
[2/2]

“… well, yeah!” Morrison says, indignant. “If she wants another one at least! But there’s something I want to use my conscription benefits on too.” He pauses for a bit. “It’s uh…” He sighs, rubbing at his nose. “It’s actually sappy. I’m not going to tell you guys.” Graves responds by throwing a crumpled C-Ration cap wrapper at him. “Ah!”

“Tell us, xenoboy.” Graves is having none of that.

“Yeah, tell us,” says Nielson. “We won’t make fun, promise.”

Morrison blinks, looking at Graves, then at Nielson and you all. Tierney leans up against you towards him, curious. He sighs, rubbing at his nose again. “Fine. Fine. It’s uh… I want to buy my wife a wedding ring.”

Graves squints, confused. “She doesn’t already have one?”

“No.” Morrison folds his arms. “Family wouldn’t give me any money for one. My job as a line cook didn’t pay enough for it. Not to mention her family was up in arms about me wanting to marry her too. And not to mention other things but…” He bites his lip, looking low to the ground. “That’s really the only thing I can think of wanting to do once I get out of here. I just want to see her smile. That’s really it.”

…

Tierney smiles sweetly. “That’s so sweet, Morrison.” Morrison rubs at his cheeks, some redness growing up them. She looks at you. “What about you? What are you going to do when you get home?”

> “Go back to hunting I guess.”
> “I don’t know.”
> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”
> Other

Gotta go to sleep. Will continue in the morning when possible but probably not immediately since I got some place to go first thing in the morning. Will update as soon as I can and news of it will be in /qtg/ as usual.

>>2945950
>> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”
keep our cards close to our chest

>>2945950
>> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”

>>2945950
>“I don’t know.”

>>2946002
>>2945980
Both
Though I feel like we should share something about ourselves so our crew trusts us some more
Maybe just "I don't know" and turn in for the night

>>2945950
>> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”

>>2945950
> “Gonna write some war memoires and life off of them. Hope you don't mind me taking artistic liberties guys”
Joking aside, maybe MC will get it into his head to stay in the forces and prevent shit like this from happening again?

>>2945950
>> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all

>>2946472
I have my doubts we can make it to general level but I'd like to try

>>2946647
Mee too man, I dont even know how much of a meritocracy the army is. Doesn't stop MC from being an idealist.
I mean he joined because of dem titties, he might stay for even worse reasons

>>2945950
>> “I don’t know.”

>>2945950
> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”

>>2946472
I like this

Writing update now.

> “It’s getting dark. Better get some sleep, y’all.”

“It’s getting dark, y’all. We better get some shut eye.” You lean back and lay back on the ground underneath the Land Rover. Flat ground so you won’t risk getting crushed anyway. Truth be told, you’d rather take watch but an opportunity to get some more shuteye can’t be passed up. And honestly, you don’t want to tell them that you honestly don’t know what to do after your enlistment is up. What are you going to do?

You could go back to the Trade School and get your education together. Then what? Get back to farming? Maybe. Would be a steady job you suppose but after experiencing something like this? How can you go back?

Re-enlist? Why would you want to re-enlist? You’d be stuck in the same situation you’re in right now. Hell, you might get stuck in even –worse- situations. Plus, re-enlisting isn’t a guarantee that you’ll just ascend the ranks and make Officer. And of course there’s always the chance that you’ll die. Not to mention here there’s very few chances of a long term relationship ever blossoming. Contrary to what the books and movies tell you, there’s strict rules about relationships in the military. And even more contrary, civilian and military relationships are a fickle thing. Of course, the perfect situation would be being an officer and being part of a successful annexation of a planet like Acheron. Then you’d get your land titles, and a definite place to retire.

Then there’s hunting. Eventually you’re going to run out of things to hunt back home. And there’s always the chance that whatever you’re hunting decides it doesn’t want to die and tries to kill you.

“Right.” Tombs stands up, sighing. “I’ll take first watch then.” You try to sit back up but then he looks down at you. “Don’t bother. You’ve taken first watch long enough. Let someone else do it.”

Graves groans a bit. “I’ll stay awake too. Don’t worry, we’ll be fine.” The Land Rover settles a bit as Graves dismounts.


You lean back, pushing a satchel down so you can use it for a pillow. Tierney as well lies back underneath the Land Rover too, as well as Nielson. Darkness has already come down upon the sky. And with that, Nielson is already fast asleep. You shut your eyes too, sighing quietly.

…

You feel a poke at your arm. Eh? You open your eyes then turn to see Tierney on her side, looking at you. “You’re not awake, are you?” she whispers. Gee. The fact that your eyes open and you’re looking straight at her should tell her everything. “I’m sorry. I just can’t sleep. That’s all.”

“Nightmares?” you whisper back.

She shrugs, not intending to look you in the eye.

> “I’m not your Dad. Just close your eyes and go to sleep.”
> “Um. Just think of home and think of getting out of here. Alright?”
> “So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet?”
> Other

>>2947055
> “So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet?”
S-should we cuddle her?
I don't know guys, I've never done this with a g-girl before

>>2947055
>> “So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet?”

>>2947055
>“So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet

>>2947055
> “So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet?”

> “So what really happened that night? How’d you even end up in that closet?”

Tierney looks at you when you ask that question. She really doesn’t seen to want to answer, but at the same time she seems to want to say it just to liberate herself of it. “Well. I’m sure I already told you. We got overran at Devil’s Den. Colonel left us behind. Nobody knew what to do.” She twiddles her fingers gently, looking down at them as if she were recreating the scene with her hands. “And truth be told, I… I knew that if I tried to run, I’d be cut down by the Lizards. So I hid. Ran into the store room and hid in one of the closets and I hid.”

“Did anyone else get the same idea?” you ask.

She’s silent at that. “No,” she says, barely above her breath. “I just hid there and basically sat and waited for the screaming and gunfire o stop. And even then, I kept waiting.” She points to her ear. “I still kept hearing it. Probably long after. I just...” She frowns, chewing on her lip. “I heard a couple of people run in and leave. Some other guy came and went too. One person got caught by the Raptors when he tried to come in. Got dragged out kicking and screaming,” she mutters. “And I made damn sure to stay quiet.” She looks at you again, shrugging. “Really, the only thing I could do to stay alive.”

You nod. “Well, you’re here now. So…”

“That doesn’t mean it’s right,” she says. “Someone else better than me. Someone that can actually put up a fight. They should’ve lived.” She squeezes her hand, then turns away from you onto her side.

…

“Tierney?” You slowly reach your hand out to her. “Tierney, I-“

“Good night,” she says quietly. All you see is her back. She doesn’t move, but clearly she’s forcing herself to be still.

…

> “Good night.”
> Well, now you can’t sleep. Go and relieve Tombs and Graves.
> “Tierney, it’s okay.”
> Other

>>2947265
>> “Good night.”

>>2947265
>“Tierney, it’s okay.”

>>2947265
>> Well, now you can’t sleep. Go and relieve Tombs and Graves.

>>2947265
>> “Tierney, it’s okay.”
>> “Good night.”
We deserve the sleep. Unless graves and tombs are fucking. In that case, maybe we should go check

>>2947370
Frankly, Graves asking Tombs about his "Tombstone" isn't an image I wanted.
>>2947265
> “Tierney, it’s okay.”

> “Good night.”
> “Tierney, it’s okay.”

“It’s okay, Tierney.” You stop yourself from touching her. Best not to do that. Not in a time like this. “Well. Good night then.” She’s silent. Either asleep or just non-responsive. You sigh, then turn over away from her. Damn it. Why’d you have to remind her about that? You’re probably just making things worse, aren’t you? Maybe. You honestly can’t tell. But she’s definitely not going anywhere just brooding on it. Nobody is. Regardless. You need some sleep. Hopefully Graves and Tombs have the perimeter set.

You shut your eyes and try to go to sleep.

…

…

“Wakey wakey.” Graves kicks at your feet, snapping you awake. You almost sit up but realize that you’re beneath the Land Rover. “Come on, Daddy. Get some breakfast in then we gotta get moving.” You look around. Tierney and Nielson have already gone. You roll out from beneath the Land Rover and find them sitting on the bed, their legs hanging over the side as they eat out of cold rations. You wipe some sleep out of your eyes then grab a C-Ration.

“Anything happen last night?” you ask.

Graves shrugs. “Nah. Just a few Raptor calls way out there but they didn’t get to us. They’re probably still on our trail.”

“Alright,” you say as you rip the top of the C-Ration off. You see Morrison manning the gun. Or rather, leaning against the gun as he spoons out some scrambled eggs with his fingers. Tombs meanwhile inspects the tires to make sure they haven’t gone flat or anything. Last thing you need is a flat tire after all. “Mind if I see the map?” Graves nods, pulling the map out of her belt. The two of you look over it on the hood of the Land Rover.

[1/2]

>>2947651
[2/2]

“We’re about here,” she says, pointing to an area outside of the swamp. “We’re about a few kilometers from the edge of the swamp. We might be able to make it there by the afternoon at the latest I think if we keep our current route.” She then swings her finger upwards. “After that though, how we traverse the swamp is a total mystery. Tree cover means we have no idea of the terrain. The Land Rover can ford water but if it gets too deep, well… puts us into the mercy of the local wildlife.” Believe this, if the dominant species is this tough, the local wildlife is probably tougher. Just because humanity conquered Earth’s apex predators doesn’t mean it did so by brute force.

“We’ll have to cross the river by feeling for stones I suppose,” you say. Graves quirks her brow. “That’s how they taught us in the Trade School. One problem at a time.”

“There’s another problem, Daddy.” You really wish she’d stop calling you that. “We don’t –know- what the local wildlife is like. We’ve only been briefed on the Lizards. Hell, that active camo lizard we ran into that one time hasn’t been catalogued by xenobiologists or military intel. It’ll be a complete unknown going in there.”

“Like I said, one problem at a time,” you say.

“Right,” she says, clearly skeptical. “You’re driving then. I’ll navigate.” Fair. You climb into the driver’s seat and Graves the passenger’s. Tombs hops in as well, hanging off of the back. You start the engine.

> Drive slow. You’re still in rough terrain. No need to rush things.
> Go as fast as the terrain allows. If they heard Raptor calls in the distance, means they can’t be too far behind. Better build some distance.
> “Actually, you better drive, Graves. I’m better with the gun instead of at the wheel.”
> Other

>>2947655
>Drive slow. You’re still in rough terrain. No need to rush things.

>>2947655
>> Drive slow. You’re still in rough terrain. No need to rush things.

>Drive slow. You’re still in rough terrain. No need to rush things.

You decide to keep the Land Rover in first gear. Any faster and you risk people falling out, not to mention you’re navigating primarily blind. Map isn’t exactly a road map in this terrain after all. Graves rests back, kicking her feet up on the dashboard as she checks the map. “Don’t put your feet on the dash.” She looks at you, a little peeved. “Just saying, it’s not safe.” She huffs, then sets them down properly in front of her seat. Morrison turns the gun back, looking around alertly while Tombs, Nielson, and Tierney rest back.

Nielson says, “Terrain this rough should be illegal!” He holds on as the Land Rover goes over a sharp bump. “Frak!”

“It will be once we conquer this real estate,” says Morrison. “Wait until we get back to the Fleet! And when they deploy more troops! We’ll have this land leveled and flat in no time!”

As you drive along, you see little drips of water start to form on the windshield. You feel some bits of rain splash on your cheeks and nose too. Damn, getting close to raining it seems. You keep your hands on the wheels and look up. Some dark clouds are forming. More rain it seems on the horizon. Just great.

After an hour, the little mist starts to intensify into an absolute downpour. Fog starts moving in as well, but it’s not so terrible that you can’t see. At least the trees and rocks are visible. And the muddy terrain is nothing that the Land Rover can’t handle. You keep the Land Rover moving, deciding not to turn the foglights on. Any lights will probably be visible for kilometers. Morrison wipes at his eyes, trying to keep his gun around on target while Tierney, Tombs, and Nielson huddle up to keep as dry as possible.

Then you see something in the fog. It looks like another Land Rover. You drive closer to it and see what’s what.

It is a Land Rover, crashed against a tree. The engine appears to have been burnt out and the front wheels appear to be completely shorn off. And there is no weapon mount in the back either. The driver is slumped over forward against the wheel, dead apparently. Seems the Lizards haven’t gotten to this yet. Graves looks to you, expectant.

> Stop and get out to investigate.
> Keep moving along.
> Other

>>2948202
>> Stop and get out to investigate.

>>2948202
> Stop and get out to investigate.
Might as well, can't see anything in the rain anyway.

>>2948202
>Stop and get out to investigate.

> Stop and get out to investigate.

“Let’s stop, see if anyone’s alive.” You pull the Land Rover up next to the crashed Land Rover, then jump out. Morrison stays on the gun to provide security while everyone else dismounts to check things out. Graves waves to herself then points out towards the woods. She’ll handle some extra security. Fine, fine. You walk up to the man in the driver’s seat. He’s slumped forward, blood seeping from his lips and his eyes blankly fixed forward. A woodland camo poncho is draped around his body, probably a Scout like you. He was probably killed in this crash perhaps. Strange though that it seems he has no passengers. Maybe he was alone. “Grab whatever’s inside.”

Tombs pulls aside a tarp covering the bed. Two cans of C-Rations, two extra frag grenades, and then there’s a small crate that’s locked. Nielson gets to checking to see if there are any parts to raid while Tombs gets to bashing the crate open. He knocks the lock off then opens it up. You walk on around to see what’s inside too.

Inside the crate is a Type 22 Anti-Material Proton Laser Rifle.

> TYPE 22 ANTI-MATERIAL PROTON LASER RIFLE
> The Type 22 Anti-Material Proton Laser Rifle is the premier long range option for the Dominion Military. It fires a focused Proton Laser perfectly accurate up to 1 kilometer before energy dispersal. Capable of penetrating 2 inches of solarite steel, the AMP Laser Rifle is capable of engaging light armor and infantry all the same.

> All Scouts are trained in the use of the AMP Laser Rifle. However, due to the length of the rifle (1.7 meter), it’s weight, and it’s low ammo capacity, the AMP Laser Rifle is distributed to one per platoon to be utilized in platoon level engagements.

> POWER LEVEL: 3 SHOTS

> ATTACHMENT: HIGH POWERED SNIPING SCOPE

A full power pack and only three shots. In theory, it can probably get a kill shot on a Rex. In theory at least. You look at the crate and see that only the lock is off. Fair enough. You hand the crate to Tombs. “Put it in back.” He nods, taking the AMP away. Can’t wait to get using that. It’s a shame you weren’t assigned to it. Apparently you aren’t the best shot in the platoon. You turn around and see Tierney folding the poncho from the dead man up. Then she hands it to you. “Here.” You blink, looking at it. “I figure, you do a lot of scouting. A poncho would do you some good.”

> “Keep it. Might look good on you.”
> “Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”
> “Put it in back. We’ll use it as we need it.”
> Other

>>2948385
>> “Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”

>>2948385
>“Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”
>collect dog tag maybe?

>>2948385
>> “Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”
Also lets see if any dogtags

>>2948385
>> “Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”
Should we take some parts from the rover?

>>2948589
sounds good

> “Thanks. I’ll make good use of it.”

You take the poncho. “Thanks, I’ll make good use of it.” Tierney grins, a light rosy color to her cheeks. You hope she doesn’t take this as you accepting a gift. It really –is- nice to have a poncho to help break up your silhouette. You pull it on and snap the buttons together. It’s definitely cozy that’s for sure. “Maybe it’ll make a nice blanket next time we set up camp.” Tierney nods, going to loot more from the Land Rover. You walk on over to the dead man then take dog tags.

> PFC. GREY JANOVICH

You place the tags into your satchel. Nielson nudges you. “I’ll start taking what’s intact so we can have things to fix ours.”

“Fair enough,” you say. He takes the toolbox from the Land Rover then starts wrenching the rear wheel from its mount. Tombs meanwhile places the AMP Rifle into the back of your Land Rover. Tierney kneels down to help Nielson get the wheel out. You keep looking around, seeing if there’s anything to loot. Then something catches your eye.

Tracks. There was a passenger. You look down at the muddy ground and see bootprints leading northwards away from the vehicle. You unsling your carbine and start following the bootprints. They’re spaced out. The passenger was running. “Find something?” asks Graves. You nod and motion her closer. She looks down when she approaches and immediately sees what you’re seeing. You keep moving with her, away from the Land Rover and the others.

The tracks continue. This guy was flat out on his feet. You don’t see any tracks from Raptors or Troodon. He didn’t even make an effort to go back for the driver even. He keeps going until finally the tracks end at a pond. The rain continues to get heavier and heavier and unfortunately the tracks appear to bleed into some thick foliage and brush. “Maybe there’s another survivor out there?”

“Maybe,” you say.

> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.
> Move on. They’re probably dead or too far to be worth the trouble.
> Other

Pausing for the night. Will come back first thing in the morning so just leave your votes in. Hope you're enjoying yourselves.

>>2948669
>> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.

>>2948669
>> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.
No man left behind, not if we can help it

>>Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.

It might be worth trying to use the radio to contact the survivor before we runner-up off into the swamp.

>>2948669
>Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.

>>2948669
>> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.
Come on guys it is obvious what we are gonna pick. Quest title is pretty clear
I don't think we should spend too much time looking for him though and I think we should definitely let our squad know what we are up to

>>2948669
>> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.
Might get an another scout to back us up on supply runs.

>>2948669
>Have someone check the body again.

It was covered the first time, and was only checked afterward by someone out to endear herself to MC. Why did the passenger leave at a dead run, when there are no signs of pursuit that we can find? I'd guess either there were fliers after the guy, or there's been some treachery.

> Keep following in that direction. Maybe you’ll run into them.

You tap your helmet. “Morrison, can you hear me?”

“Five by five,” he responds over the short range. “What’s happening?”

“We found some tracks. Some guy ran off from the crashed Land Rover. We’re going to go check them out.”

“Got it. I’ll send Tombs your way. Me, Nielson, and Tierney will wait for you back here.” Alright, three by three. Not a bad split. After several seconds, Tombs arrives with his rifle. Alright, we’re all armed and loaded. Tombs and Graves follow behind you as you get low to the ground to find more tracks. You ford across the pond then come up to the other side. There’s some sunken pits in the shape of boot prints there: more tracks. Whoever this guy is, he must have been in a hurry. Was something flying after him? You keep following them. Judging by how deep the prints are…

You can’t be more than maybe a half hour behind this guy. Maybe even less.

You slowly walk forward, keeping the tracks in your field of view. You start advancing slowly into the thick woods. You push away some bushes and thick ferns out of your way until…

The tracks just stop. You kneel down and take a look. Seems like they flopped onto their belly. They kept crawling further into the woods. Graves kneels down next to you, looking around, trying to catch sight of something. Anything. “I think we’ve gone far enough.” She may be right. Whoever’s out there must have gone already. And they definitely didn’t hear your Land Rover over this rain either. Sad to say but you must have been too late.

Or rather you would have been had someone not just grabbed your collars and thrown the both of you onto your backs. You try to bring your Carbine up but they grab your wrist and press it down to the ground, then they place their knee down on it. You yelp, trying to grab your knife but they grab your other hand and squeeze it tight.

It’s another soldier, clad in a poncho just like the driver back at the crashed land rover. Instead of a helmet they wore a green colored boonie and a data monocle set. But what was most striking to you was that this soldier was a woman too. She shushes you and Graves. Graves stares at her, her rifle barrel pointed to her, unmoving. Wait. Where the hell was Tombs?

[1/2]

>>2949472
[2/2]

You look back to see Tombs on his side, looking at you two. He raises his hand slightly. She must have neutralized him first. But if he’s not dead, then clearly she’s on your side.

She leans and whispers to you two. “Stenos in the trees. Snipers,” she whispers, almost mouths silently in fact. “Very good hearing. Very good eyesight. You’ve wandered into their killing zone.”

“We were just-“ The woman shushes Graves quickly, to which Graves rolls her eyes and lays flat on her back, annoyed.

The woman looks at you, then gets off your knee and lets go of your other hand. She signs out two Lizards plus unknown more, then points across her body northwards, and another to the east. She gestures that distance is unknown. She pulls a DMR out from beneath her poncho and readies it.

> This girl seems to know what she’s doing. Have her cover you, Graves, and Tombs while you make a break for the Land Rover.
> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards.
> Call Morrison to bring the Land Rover here for a hasty retreat.
> Other

>>2949475
>> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards.

>>2949475
>> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards
Lizard ninjas

>>2949475
>> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards.

>>2949475
>> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards.

> Work together. At least get Tombs and Graves out while you work on these Lizards.

You motion Tombs to crawl closer. He drags himself across the mud to you, then waits. You look to Graves and Tombs and sign out to them. “Lizards in the trees. You two go back to vehicle.” You motion to the girl. “She and I will cover.” They both nod. They both get onto their knees and get ready to move. You look to the girl. She lets her DMR rest on her knee then motions with both hands forward north. Right, one to the north. She then points to herself and points eastwards. She’ll handle the one to the east. Fine, fair. You quickly crouch run up to a tree then plant yourself against its southern end.

You slowly poke your head out.

Then the bark by you explodes in a sharp impact. You didn’t even hear the shot! The girl pushes Graves up. Graves immediately makes a break for the Land Rover. The girl quickly goes down to the ground and rolls into a bush. She then fires a shot from her DMR, the shot splitting through the rain into the trees.

A response comes by a shot zipping by her head. She dive rolls behind another tree like and plants her back against it. She waves at Tombs to go. He stands up and peels, running another way from where Graves went. Smart, don’t go the same route otherwise they’ll pick you out. Alright. Now it’s just you two versus your respective targets. You look at the girl. She looks back at you.

“Do you see them?” you ask through motion of your hands.

She shakes her head, making a cutting motion across her neck. “No LOS.” Damn it.

Alright. This is going to be tough. They only taught countersniping for one day at training and that was it. And it basically boiled down to “kill him first”. Which is neat advice but doesn’t tell you what to do when they get the first shot off.

Alright, think. The shot went off the impact. That means they’re probably well within 100 meters. She says they’re in the trees. They have the height advantage on you then. Think, think…

> Climb a tree and see if you can get a better angle.
> Alright, one of you has to be the bait.
> Take your helmet off, get a stick, and see if you can force a reaction shot.
> Forget this, make a run for the Land Rover.
> Other

>>2949617
> Take your helmet off, get a stick, and see if you can force a reaction shot

>>2949623
This, then measure and check the angle of the shot through the helmet. But be creative, like poke it out as if you where crawling and got too high up or climbed a tree and exposed your head.

>>2949617
>> Take your helmet off, get a stick, and see if you can force a reaction shot.
Make sure she is ready to find the source.

God damn it, we need to get ANOTHER helmet now

>>2949617
>Take your helmet off, get a stick, and see if you can force a reaction sho
Maybe we can get a spare helmet from the dead guy back at the crash site.

>>2949675
Yeah but our helmet has the scratch mark on it. It's special. Time for it to get a hole in it too I suppose

> Take your helmet off, get a stick, and see if you can force a reaction shot.

You pat your chest, then take your helmet off. You grab a stick then place the helmet at one end. Alright, helmet. Time to save your ass once more. The girl takes a knee once more and scoots over, getting her barrel out from behind the tree. Right, she’s ready. You keep it low to the ground, trying to make it look as if you were crawling. The brim peeks around the bush.

Another shot. It slams against the helmet, knocking it off the stick and sending it bouncing away. The girl takes a look. She fires. The shot flies into the rain.

You hear a soft thudding noise. You look over to see some disturbed bushes nearby. You look to her. She gives a thumbs up. Alright, scratch one. You look at your helmet again. It’s surprisingly intact. Looks like the shot didn’t even dent it. Huh. The Dominion builds these helmets to last you suppose. But now it’s in the open and you can’t get it. The girl quickly moves to the west side of her tree and rests her rifle down for a second. She motions you to move closer.

You dive roll across the open and right next to her. Your armor clatters as you move. She looks at you. “Frak, you’re loud,” she mutters quietly.

“Nice shot by the way,” you whisper. “You got a bead on the other one?”

She shakes her head. “He’s waiting for a shot. But now there’s two of us.” Right. Safety in numbers and all that. She grabs your collar and pulls you close. “He’s going to call for backup though. So we shouldn’t stay here. You cover me, I’ll go where your friends went. I’ll stop there.” She points to a tree by the pond. “And I’ll cover you. You stop across the pond and you cover me. Understand?”

“That-…” You squint. “Are you sure we can’t just take this one guy out?”

“Longer we stay here, longer the others zero in,” she says. “These things hunt in packs.” She waves her finger around, giving you a very vicious glare. “I don’t know about you. But I’m not interested in getting sniped by some Lizard.”

> “Okay. But I’ll go first. You cover me. I’m faster.”
> “No thanks. I’m not running out into the open with a sniper on our tail. We take this guy out first, then we move.”
> “I can just call for backup. My radio actually works for one thing.”
> Other

>>2949862
>> “I can just call for backup. My radio actually works for one thing.”
The rover can come in and start tearing up the trees, and the rest of the team can too. It should give us enough cover to hop in and get outta dodge.

Unless that sniper is a lot better than I give cred it for

>>2949862
>“Okay. But I’ll go first. You cover me. I’m faster.”

>>2949862
> “Okay. But I’ll go first. You cover me. I’m faster.”
We got this

>>2949862
> “Okay. But I’ll go first. You cover me. I’m faster.”
Grab our trusty helmet as well.

> “Okay. But I’ll go first. You cover me. I’m faster.”

“Okay. But I’m going first. You cover me.” She stares at you, clearly not amused. “I’m faster.”

“Alright, prove it,” she says. You nod, getting yourself ready. However she grabs your collar again and pulls you close. “Just so you know. You are going to stop. You are going to turn and you are going to cover me. Understood?” You nod. “That’s important you understand that. You –are- going to stop. You are going to turn and you are going to cover me.”

“You think I’m stupid?” you ask.

“Yeah.”

Well. That’s incredibly blunt. But okay. Fine. You get yourself ready. She turns around the tree trunk and fires. A shot rings out, nearly scraping her cheek. You get up and sprint to the tree by the pond. You jump for it, falling onto your side and rolling onto your knees before pulling your Carbine up. And in that time, you’ve actually managed to catch your helmet too. You pick it up and look at it. Slight mark where the bullet hit, but not as striking as the one that knocked you unconscious. You pull it on and aim at the general direction where she fired. No muzzle flashes. You nod to her. She nods back, getting herself ready.

She leaps out then starts sprinting, keeping her head. A shot rips through the trees and pings off the ground by her feet. She keeps running, hurrying across the pond. You squint. You’re not sure, but you thought you saw a flash right there among the trees. She dives for cover behind a rock.

A flash. Then the wood splinters by your face. You yelp, and feel a sting at your cheek. You press against it. Only a few drips of blood. Not too bad. But you definitely know where he is now.

> Fire a shot back then run.
> Suppress him!
> Relay where you saw him to the girl.
> Other

>>2950226
>> Suppress him!

>>2950226
>> Relay where you saw him to the girl.
She seems to be the better spot

>>2950226
>Relay where you saw him to the girl.

>>2950226
>> Relay where you saw him to the girl.

>>2950226
>> Relay where you saw him to the girl.

>>2950226
>> Relay where you saw him to the girl.

> Relay where you saw him to the girl.

You whistle to her. She looks over at you. You motion to where you saw him last, then gesture that he’s up in the trees. She nods and stands up. “The trees eastward, the one with the white bark on it.” She fires a shot.

…

You didn’t hear a thud. But judging how she’s still in the open waiting for the response, there’s not going to be a counterattack. You quickly run on over to her and kneel down beside her. “I didn’t hear a thud.”

“Neither did I,” she says. She nudges you. “Come on. Let’s get back to your group. They’re probably displacing after their initial shots failed.” Right. Wait too long and they’ll eventually zero in on you two again. The two of you start running back the way you came. After you press on through the bushes, you see Graves, Tombs, and Tierney assembled around the Land Rover with rifles and carbines up while Morrison and Nielson are inside the Land Rover. “This your little group right here?”

You nod. “Yeah. Yeah. It is.” You stand up straight, slinging your carbine.

“Another member of the harem,” says Graves as she climbs back up into the Land Rover. Morrison snickers at that. You give them both the finger and watch as the girl looks in back of the crashed Land Rover. She pulls the tarp up then squints. “What are you looking for, girl?” she asks.

“My AMP rifle,” she says. She sees the crate sticking out of the back of your Land Rover. She moves on over to it then grabs it. She looks at it, then glares at you. “Did you bust the lock open?”

“We- We didn’t think there was anyone else here,” you say. “I only found your tracks after we looted the place.” She brushes past you then checks the body in the driver’s seat. She checks for his dogtags, then realizes something else. She looks straight at you with the most disgusted, furious look on her face. You look down and look at her. Oh. Oooh… She steps up to you then holds her hand out.

“I’ll be taking my spotter’s poncho back,” she says very firmly.

“Hey.” Tierney stands up, stepping closer. “We were just-“

“Shut up.” Tierney freezes, put on the spot. Graves dismounts, now suddenly suspicious. Tombs too steps up next to Graves, squaring up. The girl looks back at you, then points to the poncho. “The poncho and his tags. Now.”

> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.
> “Hey. We gotta share this stuff. We can’t just hoard it.”
> “What’s your problem?”
> Other

>>2950330
>> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

>>2950330
>> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

>>2950330
>> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

>>2950330
>> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

>>2950330
>Hey. We gotta share this stuff. We can’t just hoard it.”
Give her the dog tags, but keep the poncho.

This is an active warzone, there is no space for sentimentality - as a clear pro, she should know that.

>>2950330
>Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

> Give her what she wants. No need to antagonize her.

You take his tags off your belt then hand them to her. She swipes it as if you stole them from her. Then you take the poncho off and fold it up for her. She too takes it aggressively from you, then she stuffs it into her satchel on her side. The look on her face screams malice and anger. And yet she refrains from doing anything else except taking the AMP rifle and walking away.

Wait.

“Where the hell is she going?” asks Morrison.

“Hey!” You walk after her as she starts walking southwards, away from Hill 47. “Hill 47 is that way!” You point northwesterly. “You’re going the wrong way!”

“No.” She stops and turns around. “I am going the right way. Away from the Lizards with apparently hawk eyes.”

“Didn’t you get Sergeant Cope’s message?” asks Nielson. “Everyone’s supposed to rally up at Hill 47. It’s outside of Lizard territory. Lizards won’t follow us in there.” The girl stares at Nielson, then she looks at you in confusion. You nod, confirming that. “We can take you there. We got some room in the Land Rover if we… I guess huddle up,” he says nervously.

The girl stares at you, then says, “Okay. For your information, I did in fact get Sergeant Cope’s message. But I’m not a believer. Sergeant Cope is going to get frakking eaten alive before he even gets to 47. And you wanna know why?” She steps up closer to you, looking you dead in the eye. “It’s because between him and Hill 47 are not only Lizards that the Dominion has continually underestimated. But he also has to contend with the incredibly deadly wildlife in the Swamp too. Not to mention that just because the Lizards don’t go into the Swamps normally, doesn’t mean they won’t follow him in there to kill him.” She snorts. “Besides, he was probably conscripted anyway. He wouldn’t know what he was talking about.”

“Hey!” Morrison yells out to her. “Cope’s a good man. He was watching out for us from day one. He knows what he’s doing.”

“That’s right,” says Graves. “If your plan is to survive out here in the wilderness on your own, you’re not going to make it very long either.”

The girl slings her DMR underneath her poncho, giving the stink-eye to Graves. “I’ll make it longer than you will.” She looks at you. “As for you. Be careful. I’m going to go south that aways. I work better alone anyway.” She turns back around and starts walking.

Morrison shouts to you. “We can’t just let her go by herself! She’s nuts!”

> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.
> Rush at her and restrain her. You’ll take her to safety kicking and screaming if you have to.
> Leave her be. You’re not going to waste your time on a lost cause. Even if it means giving up valuable equipment like an AMP rifle and someone who’s clearly experienced in sniping and bushcraft.
> Other

>>2950544
>> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.
Give us the frakkin AMP

>>2950544
>> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.
Should ask her how the hell she intends to get off this planet then.

>>2950544
> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.
i'm getting tired of dealing with moody conscripts.

>>2950544
>Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.

>>2950554
Seconding this.

Cope may have a bad plan, but they probably have the only working orbital transmitter left on the planet.

What’s her rank anyway?

>>2950544
>> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.

>>2950544
>> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.

> Follow her and try to convince her. But make it quick because she’s completely right in that there’s probably Lizards still out here.

“Wait!” You jog after her then get ahead of her. She tries to step past, but you quickly get in her way again. She stomps her foot, looking at you as if you’re attacking her personally. “Look. Say you do survive out there. How the hell are you going to get off the planet?” She folds her arms, glaring at you. “See, Cope has the only working orbital transmitter. Unless you have one underneath that poncho of yours, you’re SOL. His plan might be bad, sure. Let’s agree on that.” Graves and Morrison look at you. But you quickly make a waving off motion with your hand to say that you’re just kidding. “But we’re stronger together.”

“Really.” She stares at you.

“Really,” you say back.

She places her free hand on her hip, looking back at your group. “I mean, you have a fine squad, I’m sure. Your little ad hoc unit must be so proud to have you for a leader. But I work better alone. I’ve said that already, and I will keep saying it until I am blue in the face.” She tilts her head. “And besides, even if Cope has a working transmitter, what makes you think he’ll even have it by the time he meets you. –if- he meets you?”

“Then we’ll find it,” you say. “We can’t just give up hope. I promised-”

“Ooooh…” The girl shakes her head. “Worst thing you can do in a war zone is make a promise to say that you’ll get them out safe.” She looks down. “And besides. Did nobody ever tell you that hope is just the first step on the road to disappointment?” She steps past you. “Now I’m leaving and you all can go ahead and-“ A shot of plasma suddenly shoots right into her left foot. “AGH!” She falls onto her back, groaning. What the hell!?

[1/2]

>>2950764
[2/2]

You look back at Graves to see her with a smoking pistol. “Oh my goodness. How are you so incompetent to accidentally shoot yourself in the foot.” What!? Tierney steps back, shocked. Morrison too looks completely taken aback. Tombs stands there, confused. “Negligent discharge. Amateur hour, I swear.” Everyone silently stares at Graves, unsure of what to do and completely taken by surprise. She steps up to the girl and grabs her wrists. The girl resists, but Graves quickly punches her in the face to stun her before taking a tourniquet wrap out of her bag to tie up her wrists.

“Ah! You bitch!” screams the girl. “You shot me!”

“No I didn’t,” says Graves. She glares at everyone else. “She shot herself in the foot. Right?” Everyone looks away, going back to mounting up on the Land Rover.

“Graves!” you shout.

She looks at you. “What.” She tilts her head as she binds the girl’s wrists together. “She was deserting technically. And I’m not about to just let people go and kill themselves. Soooo…”

> Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.
> “How would you like it if I shot you!?”
> “You can’t just shoot people for wanting to leave!”
> Other

>>2950773
> Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.

Apologize profusely. Don't actually condemn it though lmaoo.

>>2950773
>> “You can’t just shoot people for wanting to leave!”

>>2950773
> Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.
She'd be dead if she goes out there alone sooner or later. We're meant to save as many of our guys, it'd be a waste to lose good soldiers like her.

>>2950773
>Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.

>>2950773

> Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.

> Well. Not like you can frakking do anything about it now. At least make sure she’s comfortable.

“I am so sorry,” you say as you kneel down to her. She responds by planting her boot in your face. Okay, now you’re not very sorry. Graves grabs her underneath her shoulders while you take her feet. The girl struggles and kicks but the two of you combined are enough to carry her back to the Land Rover and toss her in the back. You quickly go back to grab her AMP Rifle case and check where she fell. Nothing else dropped. Right.

“Bastards!” she screams. “I’ll kill you-“ Graves quickly stuffs gauze over her mouth, then wraps it tight. She still yells out in a muffled fashion as you get into the passenger seat. Graves’ turn to drive. You look back and see everyone mount up. You admit, you’re not comfortable with Graves actually gagging her but if she yells out, that could give away your position. Graves turns the engine over then starts rolling the Land Rover out.

…

…

The rain has finally given up. But there’s still quite the eerie mist. The hills have actually started flattening out. And you see natural marshes and puddles get splashed underneath the wheels of the Land Rover. The flattening out though at least means the ride is smoother. Smooth enough to let Tombs take the girl’s boot off and start treating the injury. The girl gives Tombs the most fiercest yet impotent look while Tombs dabs the wound with medigel and a shot of Inst-Aid. “We should have a spare set of boots,” says Tombs. “So you won’t have to walk around with a hole.” The girl continues giving him an incredibly vicious glare.

Vicious enough that Tierney and Nielson have huddled up at the other end of the Land Rover’s bed rather than be next to her.

“How’s she doing, Tombs?” asks Graves.

Tombs wraps her foot in gauze. “Light plasma scoring. Just applied some medigel and a shot of Inst-Aid to heal the bones. She’ll be fine with a day’s rest.” That’s good. Means one day more and she’ll be up and ready. Though it also might mean she’ll try to make a break for it as soon as she gets a chance to. You won’t leave her alone that’s for sure. He looks at the girl. “What’s your name?” The girl gives him the finger in response, her mouth still muffled. Tombs responds by pulling the gauze down gently and giving her a very stern look in response.

The girl squints, then sighs. “Burke.”

“Burke.” Tombs nods, then looks at you. You give a thumbs up in response, smiling at him.

Morrison looks down. “I hope you can forgive our other medic here.”

“At least this way she doesn’t die alone if we’re doomed to die,” Graves remarks. She looks to you. “How close are we?”

You check the map. “Should be just on the edge right about now.” You see something up ahead. “Wait, slow down.” Graves starts slowing the Land Rover down.

[1/2]

>>2951044
[2/2]

Up in front of you are bones. Towering over the Land Rover is a massive rib cage of some giant beast. Probably one of those sauropods they call them. It wasn’t just one, there was another. And another. There were dozens of these skeletons just lying in the open, with dead trees and boulders punctuated between them. You check the map. Graves looks at you again. “What the hell is this?”

“I don’t know,” you say. “There’s a patch about half a kilometer long here, that’s probably where we are.” She looks over at it, slowing the Land Rover to a halt. “This is the flattest and driest ground near the Swamp so…”

“I got a bad feeling about this place,” Graves says, a look of quiet terror on her face. Everyone looks around too, clearly disturbed.

Nielson curls up a bit. “Guys. This place looks like the Devil’s own pit.”

There were no sounds except the humming of the engine. No wind. No birds. Not even insects. Nothing echoes off the bones of these dead beasts.

> Go around this place. There’s nothing but trouble.
> You’ll save time going through. You have seven people, a Land Rover, and a cannon. There can’t be too much trouble.
> Stop up. Maybe it’s best to take a break to decide what to do next.
> Other

>>2951050
>Stop up. Maybe it’s best to take a break to decide what to do next.
i dunno maybe SCOUT it out

>>2951050
Also can we detach the scope from the AMP rife and use it by itself like that

>>2951068
Yes. Get your Operator on.

>>2951050
>> Stop up. Maybe it’s best to take a break to decide what to do next.

>>2951061
Supporting

>>2951061
Supporting

+ Replace our carbine with a rifle and add a scope.

> Stop up. Maybe it’s best to take a break to decide what to do next.

You have Graves stop the Land Rover in full, then you dismount. Graves as well dismounts too, as does Morrison. He directs Tierney to take the gun over while Tombs stays with Burke. You walk up to one of the ribs. It’s almost five times your size. Graves steps up next to you, looking up at it as well. Morrison too. “I’ll be damned…” Morrison tips his helmet up to get a better look at it. “And there’s so many too.” He looks around. “This one of them elephant graveyards I hear so much about?”

“These bones are gonna give us some trouble,” says Graves. “It’ll be tough to navigate through.” She gently presses her boot against one then pushes. “Locked in tight. We’d need engineers to blow these bones.”

“I’ll scout ahead,” you say. “You two stay here and keep a lookout. Anything happens, call me on the radio.” Graves nods. Morrison too walks back to the Land Rover. You take a breath, then once more take in your surroundings. It wasn’t just rib cages. The spines, necks, and tails were in the ground like long bony trails. They coiled, spiraled, or were laid out like rope. But what seriously unnerved was how little you could hear. You definitely weren’t deaf. But even insects tend to make a lot of noise in places where there are corpses.

Here, nothing. Just stillness. Even talking seems like an incredibly loud action.

You walk forward into the mist.

“Where’s he going?” asks Burke.

“To scout,” says Graves. “Don’t worry, he’s done this before. He’ll be fine.”

Nielson says, “He’s saved my life you know. And Morrison’s. And Tombs’. So pay him some respect. He’ll be back.”

Remember, they’re east. You look down. You can also follow your own tracks if need-be. Just keep walking forward and look around. Don’t stray too far. The earth beneath you is a darkened brown, loose and soft. It doesn’t help that your own footsteps, no matter how slowly you walk, sound like explosions from the dirt shifting beneath your feet. You keep walking forward, your carbine raised, and your heart pounding. This isn’t like that big camouflaging lizard back in the woods. This is something else entirely.

After a few meters walk, you see something slumped up against a rib. You look back. You can’t see the Land Rover because of the mist. But you do have your own tracks to guide you. You step towards the rib and see that it’s a soldier. But judging by how limp he is, he’s probably dead. You step up to him and kneel down. There were long gaping slash marks up his arm, and there was a deep claw mark across his chest, his chestplate was split in two. You pull his head up and see his eyes blank, glazed over, no life. Bled to death most likely. You take a sniff of him and flinch back. He’s been dead for a while.

[1/2]

No weapon, no grenades, no IFAK either. But you do find clipped to his belt a machete, still in its scabbard. You take it then pull the machete out. It’s stained with some blood. Probably seen some use.

> TYPE 0 ANTI-FOLIAGE AND EMERGENCY CLOSE COMBAT WEAPON
> The basic philosophy of the Dominion in regards to close combat is simple: do not get into close combat. Regardless, some effort has to be put into plans on the off-chance that a soldier be caught without a firearm.

> The Type 0 is functionally a machete, and is referred to as such. With a basic Latin construction, it has a 45cm blade and is forged from asteranium steel, a robust, lightweight, and rustproof metal mined from asteroids. In theory, the machete is used for clearing thick foliage (and was originally named the Type 0 Anti-Foliage Tool). In practice, it has been a common weapon for infantrymen since the Felisian Police Action, where the Felisians on ambushing Dominion squads in close quarters demanded a weapon capable of countering them that wasn’t just their standard knife. However, they are not standard issue kit. Many infantrymen make a machete one of their first purchases with their paychecks.

You strap the machete scabbard to your belt then take another look at the man. He has something in his hands. You check and find a personal audio diary. You take it and press play.

> CPL. T. BAKER – 621.252.22TB
> 04.25.2441
> PLAY…

> [1426]: G-… God I’m hit bad. Okay. I can still talk. Alright… If you’re hearing this. I’m probably dead. So is my team. Don’t bother looking for them. I know they’re dead. And you’ll be dead too if you- if you go looking for them.

> [SKIPPING ONE MINUTE OF SILENCE]

> [1428]: Shi… We tried to rally with Cope at Hill 47. It was the five of us. But we made it to this boneyard but- but something ambushed us when we came in here. Huge flying birds. This is their territory. They’ll know you’re here. They can smell you a klom away. If you’re listening- If-… God. Augh… if you’re listening. You gotta turn back. Or you’re gonna end up dead.

> [SKIPPING TWO MINUTES OF SILENCE]

> [1430]: Please. Just turn back. There’s no point. If I have to die to make sure you live, then please. Just tell my girls I saved you, okay?

> [NO FURTHER AUDIO DETECTED]

> [RECORDING PAUSED]

…

The big question isn’t the fact that he made it out. He’s dead.

No. The big question is why did they just leave him here? He’s on their turf. They could’ve eaten him at any time.

They left him here as a message.

> Sprint back to the Land Rover.
> Remain calm. Find a path for the Land Rover. They were just a five man team on foot. You’re a seven man team with a Land Rover and a cannon.
> Remain calm and walk back.
> Other

>>2951378
> Remain calm and walk back.
They don't know we know. Hopefully.
Let's just start walking back calmly, then dip as soon as we hear anything bird-like.

>>2951378
>Remain calm and walk back.

>>2951378
>> Remain calm and walk back.

>>2951378

> Remain calm and walk back.

Also, radio ahead to the team what we've found if we can.

>>2951378
>> Remain calm and walk back.
Well going to Cope sounds like a dead mission now. We can either go in guns blazing and be a mobile AA platform, or figure out a way to contact cope, or go around

>>2951472
Supporting this.

How the fuck did Cope get through?

And where is all of this guy’s gear?

>>2951540
Maybe he dropped the rest of his shit and ran, or the birds "looted" him

>>2951531
I don't see how that's true at all anon. They tried to go shortest path through the bones instead of around. This led to them getting dabbed upon. I think it's pretty apparent we can go another way and still (hopefully) link up with Sergeant Cope.

>>2951592
Well unless I missed it above, it sounded like this was the only way through. I'd be willing to take a day or two in a detour I suppose, but that brings it's own challenges

> Remain calm and walk back.

After taking his tags, you stand up slowly, then start retracing your steps back to the Land Rover. You tap your helmet. “Guys.”

“Yeah?” Morrison answers.

“I’m heading back. Found a body and a message telling us to go back,” you say. “I’m on my way back now. Don’t leave without me.”

“Alright,” he says. “Well hurry up. Let’s not overstay our welcome.”

You keep your carbine close. Keep it ready. And make absolute sure nobody sneaks up on you either. If they’re birds. They’ll immediately have one advantage on you. They can fly. And in this mist, if they fly up more than a few meters, they’ll just disappear. Don’t worry about that now though. Worry about getting hell out of here. Just stay calm and walk back. If you do any running, you might startle something and draw attention to yourself. Plus, running might mean they understand you’re scared. Worst thing you can do when in sight of a predator is look visibly scared.

Then you hear the fluttering of wings, like feathers beating against the air. You turn your head and see a black bird come in out of the mist and roost at the top of one of the ribs. It stares down at you. The feathers were jet black, but around its neck were white feathers, like a collar. It cocks its head, turning its whole eye to you, a large almost completely dark eye. That bird can’t have been more than a dog in size.

> MIOCORVUS
> These raven-like birds appear to be untamed wildlife. They are opportunistic scavengers, feeding either on plants or on meat. Though occasionally they also hunt for their own meals as well. While they do not feature the infamous killing claw of the terrestrial Raptors of Acheron, their sharp talons and hardened beaks more than make up for it. They also show stunning intelligence for their size.

> As social creatures, they tend to congregate into ad-hoc flocks with no clear leaders. Instead, they are rather communal. They call out to signal abundance of food when one is not enough to consume it all for instance, and they fiercely protect their territory from foreigners.


Another comes out of the mist and roosts next to it too. And another. You turn your head and see another come onto a rib, staring down at you. One of them hoarsely calls out, it echoes across the boneyard. More of them start flying in. From a couple to almost a dozen now. Some fly in onto the ground next to you. Another drops in, resting on a skull. Two poke their heads out from behind a vertebrae.

You keep stepping back, looking at all of them. They’re not making a move. This is an intimidation play. But the more they pile up, the more confident they’ll be in thinking that you’ll be easy prey.

> Shoot at them then make a break for it.
> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.
> Yell, shout, try and make yourself look like you’ll put up a serious fight. Backing down will embolden them.
> Other

Pausing for tonight. Gotta go to sleep. Will update in the morning (a rarity for this weekend as it is Columbus Day, thank god for that Spanish idiot). Just leave your votes in. Hope you all are enjoying yourselves and let me know if there's anything I can do to improve.

>>2951634
> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.
They know that we know.
Let's not do anything stupid and keep moving.

>>2951634
> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

>>2951634
>> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

>>2951634
>Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

No sudden moves

>>2951634
> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

We got a grenade still? We toss that when they attack and we dive, the grenade will go off and spook em like air horns at airports+maybe shrapnel and explosion may even kill or shred a few wings.

>>2951634
>> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

>>2951639
Top quest. Only thing that could improve is if there was more of it

> Keep them in your sights and keep walking back towards the Land Rover.

You start walking back, keeping your eyes on these birds. If you show even a hint of weakness, they’ll pounce. They continue staring at you. Occasionally, one chirps or caws. But for the most part, they’re content to ward you away by show of numbers rather than force.

One of them flies up in front of you, pecking at your feet. You jump back. The others start flapping their wings, but you simply start walking back faster. One of them caws loudly, making the others start calling out in response. It was like a chorus from hell ringing in your ears. You keep stepping back. Don’t look back. “H-… Hey!” Tierney. Don’t look back.

“Don’t. Get in the Land Rover,” you say. Another flies up next to you, looking up at you. Given how small it is compared to the others, maybe it’s a juvenile. It shrieks at you, then pecks at your boot. You jump up from it again. The little birdy keeps shrieking at you, jumping on its feet around you while flapping its wings. You suddenly stop, something’s hit your back. The Land Rover’s hood. You plant your arm down against it and start tracing yourself towards the passenger seat. You pull yourself in.

“What in the hell…” Morrison looks at the now dozens strong flock of Miocorvus in front of them. They stand on ribs, shrieking and screaming down at you while others peck and poke at the Land Rover’s wheels (ineffectually).

One of them swoops past Tierney, making her squeal in fright. Another zooms overhead.

> “Okay, back it up. Back it up. Back it up. Just back it up.”
> “Floor it!”
> “Weapons free. Open fire!”
> Other

>>2952104
>> “Okay, back it up. Back it up. Back it up. Just back it up.”

>>2952104
>“Okay, back it up. Back it up. Back it up. Just back it up.”

>>2952104
>> “Floor it!”

>>2952104
>> “Floor it!”

>>2952104
> “Floor it!”
If they pursue then
> “Weapons free. Open fire!”

>>2952134
Not so much sound
>Back it slowly

We're still at a tie apparently and I'd like to get things moving before the day ends. Shall I roll a 1d2 to split it?

>>2952277
let the dice gods decide

>>2952277
Do it

Rolled 2 (1d2)

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WLQA2nOkoo - back it up
2.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-v51CQXx2Q - floor it

>>2952298
i-impressive

>>2952298
Those clips don't exactly inspire me with confidence.
They do quite the opposite in fact

> “Floor it!”

“Floor it!” you yell. Graves puts her boot to the pedal. The Land Rover starts speeding through. The Miocorvuses immediately scatter, crying out loudly as you drive right through their formation. The ones on the ribs fly down and dive bomb the Land Rover. One crashes into the windshield, another scrapes by Morrison as he begins to open fire on the Miocorvus. More swoop in around the Land Rover, screeching and shrieking as Graves tries to navigate through the boneyard.

“Son of a bitch!” screams Graves. “I can’t see!” A Miocorvus lands on top of the windshield and starts pecking at her. She pulls her pistol out and blasts it until falls off the front. “I’m not losing my other eye to a frakking bird, thank you very much!” You blast another bird and watch it smash right into the tire and explode from the tension.

“Cover the rear!” you yell. Morrison turns the gun around to the rear and sees a huge flock of birds flying in out of the mist. He starts firing the cannon. Rapid pulses of plasma scatter them and break their formation. But the sheer number of them plus the fact that you’re on their turf means they’re not just going to give up from a few losses. Nielson tries to fire away with a Carbine.

“Agh! Get off me! GET OFF ME!” screams Burke as Tombs shields her with his body, firing away with his rifle too at other birds. “I can- if you’d just take this binding off, I’d actually help too!”

You about to tell Tombs to untie Burke when a bird suddenly grabs Morrison and lifts him off the turret. “Agh!” Morrison flails wildly, and thanks to the small size of the bird in question he doesn’t get far. He falls to the ground and is immediately beset upon by birds. “Help! Help! Aah!” They peck and cut at him with their beaks and talons.

> Stop for no one! He’s a goner!
> Jump out and help him!
> “Stop the Land Rover!”
> Other

>>2952340
> Jump out and help him!
I can see this ending only two ways

>>2952340
>> Jump out and help him!
> “Stop the Land Rover!”

Any chance we've got something we can use as bait? Like a bloody rag? Bait and switch would seem the best approach

>>2952340
>Jump out and help him!

>>2952340
> “Stop the Land Rover!”
Untie the bitch.

>>2952340
> Jump out and help him!
> “Stop the Land Rover!”
I don't know if we have flashbangs of some sort but we should use them. Perhaps throw some grenades out to cover our advance towards Morrison

>>2952370
I think we have a flare

It could scare them off

> Jump out and help him!
> “Stop the Land Rover!”

“Stop the Land Rover!” Graves slams the brakes, almost making everyone fly forward from the inertia. You leap out and start running to Morrison. “Morrison!” A few of the Miocorvus turn to you and start flying at you, aiming to stab you with their beaks. You grab the hilt of your machete and draw. One of the birds immediately loses a wing, spiraling to the ground and screeching in pain. You slash another out of your way. The third manages to get his talons onto your chestplate. You grab it by the neck and squeeze. The hollow bones inside snap and you simply toss his lifeless body away. You reach Morrison by then and smack and chop the birds off of him. The rest back away and start cawing and screeching incessantly.

Morrison is badly hurt. There are slash marks across both his legs. His left cheek skin has almost been torn off, with the skin uselessly hanging and leaving the muscle and tendon beneath exposed. His arms as well have been torn up too with cuts and scrapes. He looks almost like Nielson. But this is hopefully nothing some Medigel and Inst-Aid won’t fix. You grab him by the arm and start dragging.

Then a Miocorvus grabs you by the shoulder and sinks its talon deep into your skin. You cry out in pain as it tries to lift you up. But it’s sniped out of the air. You look back and see Nielson putting precise shots on birds. Graves as well has dismounted, firing too. “Covering fire!” yells Graves. They keep firing as you drag Morrison back to the Land Rover.

“Ah! Ah!” Morrison holds his leg, blood dripping from every wound as you drag him back. More birds descend upon the Land Rover. There’s got to be hundreds of them now! You’ve really pissed them off now! Graves slings her rifle and runs on over to you. She helps drag Morrison back too. “Ah! They- my leg!”

Graves pulls out her pistol and snapshots a bird. It falls to the ground. And yet another immediately replaces it. Several Miocorvus immediately descend upon the Land Rover. Some peck and prod at the metal constructions. Others try to get at Nielson and Tombs and Tierney. “We don’t have enough ammo for all these birds!” she screams. Alright, think, maybe you can-

Burke forces Tombs off of her, then reaches into one of the bags in back. She pulls out the flare gun you’ve been saving up. “Hey!” you say. She fires it off. The intensely bright flare shoots up into the sky, blasting the mist with light. The birds immediately disperse, flying away or hopping away, leaving their wounded and dead behind.

You can still hear their screeching in the distance. That flare’s only bought you some time. Burke looks down at you, clearly dissatisfied and almost disgusted. “You know. That’s only going to buy us maybe a minute or two. So let’s get him in back.” You nod and help Morrison into the back bed with Graves.

[1/2]

>>2952468
[2/2]

Graves runs to the driver’s seat. “That flare’s going to be visible for kilometers. The Lizards if they’re following us are going to know where we are now.” You hop into the passenger seat and look back. Tombs is already helping Morrison’s wounds while Burke sits down, her hands still tied in front of her.

“Hey.” You sit up, looking back at her. “Maybe you-“ Burke responds by lifting her hands up, then snapping the tourniquet on her knee, freeing herself.

“I could’ve done that at any point,” she says. She nods to Tombs. “He kept mobbing me though.” Tombs ignores this as he hurriedly treats Morrison’s injuries.

“What do we do?” asks Graves. “Those birds are going to come back and we’ve already stumbled right into their little nest here and there are bones everywhere! We can’t go flatout!”

> “Just drive as fast as you can! Forget the obstacles!”
> “We’re going to have to turn around and find another way. There’s no way we can make it through.”
> “Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”
> Other

>>2952471
>> “Just drive as fast as you can! Forget the obstacles!”
The bones will hopefully provide some cover for us from the birds, but the dinos will be right on our ass. Have everyone grab a gun and turn the rover into a moving weapon platform.

Also, maybe tie the gunner down with a rope or something

>>2952471
>> “Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”

>>2952471
> “We’re going to have to turn around and find another way. There’s no way we can make it through.”

>>2952471
> “We’re going to have to turn around and find another way. There’s no way we can make it through.”

>>2952471
>“Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”
It's only half a kilometer

>>2952471
> “Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”
we're too far in to back out.

>>2952532
>>2952518
One of these was mine
>>2952532
Changing if true to this

>>2952468
>> “We’re going to have to turn around and find another way. There’s no way we can make it through.”

>>2952471
>> “We’re going to have to turn around and find another way. There’s no way we can make it through.”
I think I'm in love with Burke

>>2952471
> “Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”
We didn't just waste a flair on an avoidable situation by turning back like dumbasses.

> “Keep it slow and keep moving forward.”

“Keep it slow and keep moving forward,” you say.

“Are you nuts!?” yells Burke. “Look at what happened to your gunner!” Morrison groans as Tombs presses some medigel against his ruined cheek.

You look back at her. “Do you want to fight a bunch of animals or do you want to fight the Lizards who are on our tail!? One’s stupid and will leave us alone once we leave their territory. The other will keep pursuing us no matter what we do! We keep it slow so we don’t crash into anything and we turn the foglights on! Do it, Graves!” She nods, flipping the switch. The Land Rover’s lights come on, chopping through the mist and giving shape to more bones and trees in the desolate waste. Burke holds on as the Land Rover starts going at a steady 35 kilometers an hour. You keep yourself sat up, waiting.

Burke shakes her head, setting herself back down. You’re right. You have to believe you’re right. You can’t just turn back now. If you do, that’s time gained on the Lizards and time lost for you. They’ll pounce on you in the night and then things will get really messy.

There’s still the cawing in the wind as the Miocorvus continue to pursue. The flare’s only given them temporary pause but now they’ll be hot on your tail. The lights won’t matter, they’ll hunt by scent. And they’ve drawn plenty of Morrison’s blood. You already see their silhouettes up high in the fog. “Up there!” you yell. Nielson, Tombs, Burke, and yourself get to firing away at them. You drop several out of the sky, and they plop into the ground like sacks of wet paper. They start dive bombing the Land Rover again.

“Here they come!” Burke pulls a machete from her belt scabbard then slashes a bird out of the air. Tombs presses himself against Morrison to shield him from further harm. Nielson keeps shooting as best as he can, keeping himself as low to the bed as possible while Tierney curls up in fright.

“Hold on!” Graves suddenly has to make a left turn around a giant skull. The Land Rover shudders as everyone starts leaning to the left. The Miocorvus come in and immediately swamp the back bed. They start pecking and stabbing with their beaks. You stand up in your seat and turn around then smash a bird with the flat of your blade. Then another. One grabs you by the arm and tries to pull you out.

“No!” Tombs fires his rifle at the bird before it can wrest you out of your seat. You fall, but only your top half. Tombs grabs you quickly then pulls you back into your seat.

“Thanks!” you say. He nods, then goes back to shielding Morrison.

“How far are we!?” shouts Graves.

You quickly check the map, just as another bird lands on your shoulder and tries to claw your eye out. Graves blasts it off you with her pistol. “Uh! Halfway through!”

“That’s not good enough!” Graves screams. You look back again.

[1/2]

>>2952960
[2/2]

A Miocorvus grabs Nielson by his shoulders and starts pulling him out. “Ah! Agh! No! No!” He screams as another one grabs his arm and another his leg. They start pulling him out. Tombs leaps to grab him, pulling him in.

As that happens, Morrison is suddenly pounced on by more Miocorvus. One of them starts dragging him out. “Agh! Help! Help me!” Tombs looks back and tries to reach out for him. But another bird grabs his arm and bites his neck.

“Ah!” Tombs screams, trying to flail the bird off his arm while holding onto Nielson. “Tierney! Help him!” Tierney whimpers quietly, curling her legs up.

Burke blasts the bird off of Burke with her DMR, then smashes one of the birds grabbing Morrison. The others retreat. “We gotta speed up!”

> “Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing!”
> “No, we keep our pace otherwise we could crash!”
> Other

>>2952966
> Other
FRAG OUT!

>>2952966
>“Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing!”

>>2952966
> “Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing!”
time to go.

>>2952966
>> “Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing
Detonating a grenade in close proximity seems like a bad idea

>>2953009
If we time it right, it will scare the birds away, kill a bunch of them, and leave us unscathed.

>>2952966
>Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing!”
Call out to Tierney as well, she needs to help with covering fire or we’re all fucking dead!

> “Speed up, Graves! Stop for nothing!”

“Stop for nothing, Graves!” you scream. “Speed up!”

Graves puts her foot to the metal. The Land Rover’s wheels spin, kicking up dirt and muck up into the birds behind. From 35 kilometers an hour to 75 and even higher, the Land Rover can accelerate pretty quickly! Everyone holds on as Burke slashes and chops the remaining birds off the Land Rover. They follow behind, trying to catch up. They know this ground better than you. But you have speed, agility, and guns on your side! Nielson keeps firing away, smashing birds left and right. Burke too as she holds onto the back.

“Keep it up, Graves!” you yell.

“I’m trying, I’m trying!” she says. A Miocorvus flies in from the front and explodes in a cloud of feathers off the windshield. It leaves only a dusty impression of itself on the glass. Another Miocorvus flies in, grabbing onto Tombs’ head. Tombs grabs onto its legs, then smashes the bird against the side of the Land Rover. The lifeless broken corpse goes sailing over the side. “Whoa!” You look ahead and see a skull jutting out of the ground.

The Land Rover crashes over it with an explosive impact, and you can hear a loud grinding noise from the wheel arch. The Land Rover vibrates very subtly but very frighteningly too. What the hell was that? No matter, the Land Rover keeps going. And the flock of birds is actually thinning out. And so are the bones too!

“I think we’re about to make it!” you say. Graves turns the wheel left, but the Land Rover does not respond to it very well. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know! That impact must’ve shook up the wheel!” she says. The Land Rover keeps going at speed, passing over and bumping over bones and rocks. You hear some light splashing noise too. You look down to see puddles and mud. You must be getting close to water. You look forward and see a light reflection.

“Graves, brake!” you shout. She stomps her foot on the brake. Everyone goes flying forward, holding onto something as the Land Rover cries to a stop. However, the left wheel continues forward, shooting the Land Rover right. Just as it approaches a body of water. “Stop the wheel!”

“I can’t!” She tries to shut off independent power to the wheel. “It won’t stop!” The Land Rover slides straight into the pond, billowing water up and mud up into the air. Everyone dismounts while Graves tries to stop the wheel. Nielson groans, coming over to see the damage, but he only gets splashed in the face and chest in return. Graves smashes the control panel and finally the wheel starts coming to a halt.

[1/2]

>>2953271
[2/2]

The Land Rover has stopped. You look back. And so have the Miocorvus. Either you’ve made it out of their territory or they’re no longer interested in attacking. Then you hear some sharp calls in the distance. Raptors. One croaking howl, followed by several sharp Lizard cackles. “How far you reckon?” you ask.

Burke pulls a new powerpack out of her belt and loads it into her DMR. “Make it a couple of kilometers, easy. Probably a patrol backed up by those Stenos we left behind.”

“Nielson!” you yell. “What’s the damage?”

He kneels down, looking at the left wheel. “That crash jammed the accelerator for this wheel on,” he remarks. “And the axle is almost completely split apart.”

“How long would it take you to fix it?” you ask.

He sighs, rubbing his bloodied cheek. “Uh. You got a powerpack?” Burke quickly tosses him one. “We’ll replace the wheel first then we gotta fix the axle too, twenty minute job guaranteed.”

“Can you make it ten?” You drop down off the Land Rover. He shrugs. He’ll do what he can. You look at Tombs as he presses a piece of medigel soaked gauze against his neck. Morrison groans as he lies in the back, holding his leg. Graves quickly jumps up and goes to tend to him. Burke looks around, scoping things out quickly with her DMR before turning around to you all.

“Well that was frakking risky!” she says. Oh, great. Here we go. She steps up to you. “Every indication those Miocorvus were just warding you off their land and your first inclination is to floor it.”

“Hey!” You’re not going to stand for that. “Like I said. It’s either the Miocorvus, or the Raptors. Which would you rather face in a fight? At least the Miocorvus gave up. The Raptors won’t until we’re dead or they are.” Burke shakes her head, but remains silent. There’s begrudging agreement in that look. Then she turns to Tierney, who is busy pressing some gauze and medigel onto a cut on her arm.

“And what was she doing!?” shouts Burke. Uh oh. Tierney blinks, surprised. Burke nods to you. “Yes, you. Miss ‘I’m-too-good-to-fire-my-weapon’. What were you doing?” Burke advances on her, and Tierney quickly finds herself backed into the Land Rover. Nielson stops his repairs to look.

“Hey, leave her alone!” Graves says. She keeps pressing more gauze into Morrison’s wounds as she says that.

Burke holds up a hand, then presses her finger into Tierney’s chestplate. “You have a wounded man in the back and three of your guys getting chopped to pieces. And you’re just sitting in a corner crying your eyes out.” Burke glares at her. Tierney looks away. “Hey. Look at me when I talk to you!” Tierney slowly looks at her, her eyes quickly shooting from place to place except Burke’s eyes. “You’re in an –active- warzone, babe. What are you doing!?” she shouts, straight into Tierney’s face. Tierney quivers, trying to find the words for it.

> “Burke, that’s enough.”
> Stand by.
> “Tierney, she doesn’t mean anything by it. Just listen.”
> Other

>>2953276
> Stand by.
As unpleasant as this is, it’s the reality of the situation.

>>2953276

> Redirect things.

Put Tierney on the Rover's canon if it won't cause an issue for repairs, tell her to watch for incoming Miocorvus with a rifle it it will. Grab Burke and go scout the direction we heard the Raptors coming from. Everyone else is to patch themselves up as best as they can and reload, as the second that repair is done we're getting the fuck out of here.

>>2953338
+1

>>2953276
>“Burke, that’s enough.”
Then
>Redirect things.

>>2953338
Sure, but honestly, Tierney needs to snap out of it, or she could end up killing us

>>2953338
That'll work.

>>2953414

I agree, but now is definitely not the time. Our vehicle is out of commission for at least 10 mins and a loud, drawn out argument will only draw the attention of the birds, both in the air and on the ground, which will fuck us if they attack before repairs are done.

> Other

You pat Burke’s shoulder. She turns around to look at you, very peeved you’re interrupting her. “Come on. Watch that side.” You motion with both hands to look east. Burke stares at you as if wondering why you’re giving her orders. “Do it,” you say. She snorts, slinging her DMR before walking off east. She limps all the way, her foot still healing from that GSW. You look at Tierney. “On the gun, now.” She hesitates. “Now,” you say, firmly. She quickly hurries up and takes the gun position.

Graves looks at you, then nods to Burke. You shake your head, waving it off. She grunts, going back to wiping blood off of Morrison’s face. You can’t deal with this. There’s a time and a place. Now’s not the time or the place. You unsling your carbine and jog on over east. There you find Burke knelt down, her targeting monocle over her eye set to infrared. You do the same too, kneeling down.

In the infrared, you see signatures of Miocorvus flying around in large flocks. Definitely hundreds of them in the mist that you can’t see with the naked eye. But so far, they’re not advancing on you. If anything, it looks like they’re picking up their dead and wounded to be carted elsewhere. Maybe the birds have some sense of corpse disposal. You hear shrill calls in the distance from Raptors. “How far do you think?” you ask.

“Still a kilometer out at least,” says Burke. “They were definitely on your tail at least that’s for sure. You know what’s following you specifically?”

“We outran a pride of Raptors,” you say. “They were led by a Champion.” She looks at you, suddenly interested. “So far I think they must have lost us when we went off road but I think they’re sure to pick up our trail. Especially when the rain picked up. They’ll be sure to see the Land Rover’s tracks.” You look back and see Nielson with an improvised welding rig carved out of a powerpack and some bits of metal and scrap. Man, that boy knows how to do some fixing. He’s busy welding the axle back together after having replaced the wheel with the help of Tombs.

You quickly wipe some sweat and blood off your cheek. Ah, you got a cut back there. Was that from the stenos or from the Miocorvus? You don’t know now. What matters is that your heart is still pounding but there’s no action. It was getting on your nerves waiting to see if they’ll come back to you. You look at Burke, then say, “See anything?”

“No, just birds,” she says. She rests her DMR on her thigh then looks to you. “Alright, boo. What’s your plan? We’ve hit a pond, we’re likely to hit marshland soon too if we keep going west.” You pull your map open. Burke scoots over to look at it.

[1/2]

>>2953513
[2/2]

So far you assume you’re at the most westerly part of the Boneyard patch. That means from here there’s about two options.

The first option is going north, skirting along the edge of the Swamp towards Hill 47, then moving west towards the hill. It may mean you actually meet Sergeant Cope on his way, or he might get there first owing to the fact that Hill 47 is still at least another 70 or 80 kilometers away. Not to mention that it’ll take longer to get there too. And the longer you take to get there on terrain that favors the Lizards, the better chance they have of closing the distance.

The second option however is to just go straight into the swamp to take your chances. Sergeant Cope may be right in that the Lizards will at least –hesitate- to go in there to pursue. But there’s so many unknowns in crossing the Swamp that the map doesn’t tell you. There’s marshland, there’s swamps, there’s thick forests, there’s probably unstable ground too that the Land Rover may not easily traverse. But depending on how you go along, it could be faster. And it means the only thing you’ll likely have to deal with is wildlife. And wildlife you can be sure are only out to get their meals and defend their territory. They’ll likely leave you alone if you leave them alone.

> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.
> Go straight into the swamp and make your way to Hill 47 that way.
> “I’ll put it to a vote once we get the Land Rover working.”
> Other

>>2953515
>> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.
I've learned my lessons with the wildlife

>>2953515
>> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.
We can always divert to go into the swamp of things get hairy.

>>2953515
> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.

>>2953515

> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.

The enemy you know and all that.

>>2953515
>> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.

>>2953515
>Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.

Have some of the other squad members grab something like a large branch with leaves to tie to the back of our rover. The leaves and branches will cover our tracks (even if it doesn't work, it's worth a try. Especially now when we've stopped.)

> Go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp.

You sigh. “We’ll go north and skirt along the edge of the swamp. Wildlife’s an unknown, our enemy is. We know how to beat them. You know how to beat them. But these Miocorvus and whatever is in that swamp, I don’t to risk anything. We can always divert inside if things get too sticky.” She nods, furrowing her brow a little. “It’ll take a little longer, we might even arrive behind Sergeant Cope. But it’ll at least be better going for the Land Rover. It won’t be as hot either.” She stares at you. “I mean, that’s just something to consider. Means we have to stay hydrated. And swamp water on an alien planet.” You shrug. “Not exactly my thing.”

“Fair point.” Burke shrugs at that. “I’ll be honest. I think I’d take the swamp but given that we have wounded now and you have…” She motions to Tierney, who is still on the lookout. “Her. Might be a bit some trouble if we go there in the shape we’re in.”

“Right.” You nod. That’s fair.

Nielson yells out. “Land Rover’s fixed!” He tosses away the now useless powerpack into the pond, then dumps the toolbox into the back. “Let’s get moving!” Graves helps him into the back. You and Burke quickly run back to the Land Rover. You take the passenger seat again while Graves drives once more. You look back and see Tombs load up as well, then you spot a tree branch resting on the pond. Driftwood.

“Wait, wait! Grab that!” You step off then hurry on over to the driftwood. Burke looks over then sees what you’re doing. She helps grabs the hulking branch. You drag it on over to the Land Rover then detach the cable winch from the front. You attach it to the back then tie the cable around the driftwood. “Alright, go!” You hop in, as does Burke. Graves starts the Rover up again and soon you’re off. The driftwood should help mess up the tracks. Eventually the driftwood itself will break up but it’s worth a shot.

Either way, you’re heading north now. No stopping until you’ve safely built some distance.

…

…

>>2953646
[2/2]

With the sun starting to set again, you’ve encountered no more hostiles. The Miocorvus were happy to let you leave that’s for sure. You take bite out of a cold C-Ration as Graves drives, as does everyone else. The Land Rover crosses soft ground, right across the boggy ground. It was open and flat, and the mist was no longer around so you could at least see for quite some kilometers. The lights were on, as much as you don’t want them to be. But Graves needs them so she doesn’t crash into anything like a rock or an animal.

And indeed there were animals. There were quadrupedal Lizards roaming in a large pack of at least thirty or fourty roaming ahead of you. They drink from the water in the bog, with the larger ones glancing around, giving a throaty deep call idly. “What are those?” asks Nielson.

Burke idly cleans her machete with a rag. “Iguanodan.” Nielson and Tierney look at her, expectant. Burke glares at them. “They’re harmless. Just don’t get too close to them. They’re not going to eat you, they’re herbivores.”

“You seem like you know a lot about these Lizards,” says Morrison. “Yowch!” Tombs presses a bit of medigel into a wound on his leg. “Agh! Son of a…”

Burke shrugs. “I’m really into xenobiology. Always fascinated me how close these Lizards are to Earth dinosaurs.” Seems a little too coincidental if you ask yourself but those are questions that are far beyond a simple grunt.

“We’re losing light,” says Graves. “What do you propose, Daddy?”

Burke looks at Graves, then at you. “Did she just call you ‘Daddy?’”

“Y- yeah, let’s not,” you say.

> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.
> Set up camp here for now. It’s in the open where you can see plenty of things roaming for quite a long distance so you at least have warning.
> Other

>>2953648
>> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.
It'll suck staying up all night, but we can take turns

>>2953648
>> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.

>>2953670
This. Take shifts. One driver, one guard on the turret.

>>2953648
> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.
camping in the open is bad.

>>2953648
>> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.

> Keep driving. Better to build up some distance overnight than have to set up camp in the open.

“We’ll keep driving. Let me know when you’re tired and I’ll switch out with you, Graves.” She nods at that, keeping her hands on the wheel. Considering all that’s happened today, you wouldn’t be surprised if everyone was tired. Even you’re feeling some sleep nagging at your brain. You look back behind yourself and see Morrison motionless. “He’s not dead is he?”

Tombs shakes his head. “Gave him some pain-stop so he can sleep. The wounds themselves are pretty serious but no bone fractures thankfully so he should heal nicely. Medigel will take care of it. That cheek though’s gonna have a nasty scar.”

Graves snorts. “Maybe his wife will love it. I know Felisians are really into warrior types.”

You roll your eyes then look at everyone else. Tombs lays himself back next to Burke while Tierney takes the gun. Nielson too is drearily dozing off as he eats. Tierney leans up against the gun, scanning the horizon with her infrared on her monocle. Burke meanwhile simply tips her boonie hat low as she sheathes her machete into her scabbard and kicks her feet up on the side. It’s quite crowded back there now. You’re not sure if you find anyone else that you’ll be able to take them. Given your track record though, you’ll make it work.

After all, no one gets left behind. Not on your watch.

“So where’d you come from, Burke?” you ask.

“Echo Company, 2nd with the 60th,” she remarks. “1st Platoon. Our job was to secure your northern flank.”

“How’d you come by that position we found you in?” asks Tombs.

Burke tips the brim of her boonie hat, revealing very tired and very angry eyes. “Me and my spotter Grey wanted to scout a possible permanent location to stay for the time being. We took a Command Land Rover that our Captain abandoned and drove off west. Picked up Sergeant Cope’s transmission. Before we could agree on what to do, Stenos jumped us. Grey was killed in the crash trying to avoid them. That’s how we met. Alright?”

You look at Tombs. Tombs shrugs, twiddling his fingers a little.

“And before you guys say ‘sorry about your spotter’, it’s fine. People die,” she says. She snorts, tipping her boonie cap down once again. “Now go ahead and wake me when you need to switch out.”

Graves pats you on the arm. “You too, Daddy. Get some shuteye before I call you.” Fair enough. Even with the odd bump or jostle of your seat, you might as well try and get some sleep in before you’re called to drive once more. You lean back in your seat and sigh. You glance back once more at Tierney. She looks down at you for a second then goes back to scanning the horizon. What are we going to do with you, girl. You shake your head.

Sleep first, talk about cowardice in the line of duty second.

Done for this weekend. I should have some free time to do this the coming weekend (unlike last time) so expect more. Hope you're enjoying yourselves and do please tell me what you're loving about it. It'll help. (or it might not. I don't want to pander.)

See you soon.

This quest is great. Its got an interesting cast, a great concept, the MC doesn't feel op or underpowered, you've got an interesting enemy force, the combat is well written and coherent. Shit I could go on. The main thing is that its interesting and fun. Its good shit, keep it up.

>>2953758
It's hard to pick any one thing to state that I love about the quest. It's a great quest. It just is.

Fun all around quest. I just hope you have a clear ending you want and you dont suffer from the QM curse

>>2953762
I really love reading the stuff you write, you really put effort into it. Dunno if its your first quest or not, but you do some great stuff.

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>>2953807
>>2953824
>>2953824
>>2954143
>>2954272
I honestly wasn't expecting such glowing praise. Hope I won't let you guys down.

The woods were splattered with snow from the recent cold snap. Winter had come to Hopewell, or more specifically to the Tiara Territory (so named for the mountain range which resembled a crown above the continent). The pines looked as if they had been smothered in cotton, and the creek that you and Hal walk on was fighting off the frost and the ice poking at the rocky edges to let the water flow. Strange analogy now that you think about it but winter doesn’t last too long in this part of Hopewell. You hold in your hands an A6 Bushwhacker, a pretty old hunting rifle that actually fired bullets instead of plasma like in the military: the ones you’re used to in fact.

Today was your last day of leave before you would be shipped out. To where? You don’t really know. But you’ve already been through training. You’ve got your Scout credentials, had your DMR range time (1st in your squad, but not good enough to be the Platoon AMP Scout Sniper unfortunately), and had your dress reds all nice and pressed. You even wore them to the party that Hal invited you to that a lot of your classmates from the Tiara Territory School of Practical Trade were going to.

And speaking of Hal, he was walking alongside you, shouldering that composite bow of his. “Trust me. We’re gonna make up for last night.” You rolled your eyes. Please. Not this again. Still though.

“You sure it’s a good idea to be this far out, Hal?” you asked. “We must’ve walked a mile or two away from your Rover.”

He waved off, smiling. “Ah, it’s fine, mate. We got the rest of the day. Besides, I saw a twelve-pointer up in those hills there.” He points ahead towards the wooded hills down the creek. “Last week or so. I think this is his territory.” He’s referring to Tiara Caribou. They don’t resemble Earth caribou from the zoos and books in the slightest, except for the antlers and maybe their six legs sort of resembling the four legs. But otherwise, it’s a mass of fur and a bulwark of an armored head along with those antlers. “We take him down, it’ll be a great story for your mates in the squad.”

“Yeah, I bet,” you said back, nervously.

He looked back at you, smiling. “Still frustrated over Francine?”

“She said she’d write,” you said.

“But she didn’t give you a handie at least?” he said back, mockingly. “Not even a kiss?” You stare at him, holding your A6 close. “Face it, mate. You’ve been hoodwinked. You only knew Francine for a little bit before you enlisted. And no, staring at her from the bleachers with me and Jorge while she warms up for cheerleading practice does not count as ‘getting to know her’.” Frak. He shook his head, sighing. “Trust me, she may like soldiers but…” He pushed your chest gently, smirking. “Maybe if you’d been a bit more confident in yourself. You’d have gotten a blowjob out of it.”

“She said she’d write,” you say more firmly. “I still got a chance.”

[1/2]

>>2957582
[2/2]

“Sure you do,” he said. “Now come on. This way.”

Truth be told, you know this may be the last time you see Hal in a long while. You should think of something to say to him. Something that’ll inspire him, and maybe you too.

…

Ah, what’s the use.

…

…

You’re slapped awake. You blink your eyes quickly and see Graves has stopped the Land Rover. “Get up, your turn.” You sigh, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. Darkness has ascended so brutally that the only light ahead is the light from the foglamps. Nothing but reeds and small marshy boggy terrain in front of you. You drop down out of your seat and walk around to the driver’s seat while Graves walks over to the passenger seat.

Only to find Burke has already occupied it. “Hey.” Burke looks over, her arms folded and her feet on the dash already. “My seat,” Graves says.

Burke blinks. “I’m wounded. I need a comfy seat.” Graves blinks, mouth agape. “I got shot in the foot, remember?” Graves looks to you, as if expecting you to do something. You shrug. Can’t really argue with that. Graves can’t seem to find some way to argue with it either. She grumbles, going to the back. You look back and see her climb in while Tombs is on the gun. Everyone else is dead sleeping.

Though, as you start the Land Rover along. Maybe this is a good time to get to know Burke. You look over at her and see her sharpening the blade of her machete.

> Yeah. Maybe not.
> “So, Burke. Where are you from?”
> “Your foot feeling better?”
> “So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”
> Other

Leaving this up overnight. Doing an early update cuz we're probably not gonna have a lot of time on Saturday cuz I got things to do that day. Sooooo leave your votes overnight and I shall get back to it once I get home from work.

>>2957586
>> “So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”

>>2957586
> Yeah. Maybe not.
Give her some space.

>>2957586
> Yeah. Maybe not.
she's a bit of a bitch.

>>2957586
>So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”

>>2957586
> “So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”

>>2957586
>“So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”

> “So. Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?”

“So, Platoon Scout Sniper, huh?” She looks over at you, not particularly amused. You shrug. “Just trying to make small talk. Cut the ice a little.”

After a few seconds of contemplating it, she sighs. “Yes, I’m the Platoon Scout Sniper.” Truth be told, you’re quite jealous of her. You’d love to be able to heft around the AMP Laser Rifle all day. There’s some prestige to it too. The idea of being so deadly on the battlefield that one shot is all you need to kill your enemy, not to mention you hear talk that women love snipers. Heck, some of the Dominion’s greatest war heroes were snipers. You remember learning about Rosanda LaFierre, the Hunter of Jackson’s Reach, who for three days by herself with no food or water crawled through enemy tunnels to get a killing shot. “It’s not as fun as you think it is.”

“It’s not?” you ask.

She shrugs, slipping her machete back into its scabbard. “I can’t use the AMP rifle without orders. Well, seeing as how we have no officers around, that’s moot but that’s the standard order of the day. Everyone’s always begging to shoot it off at least once or twice. Then you have my spotter Grey, well- he’s dead but-…”

“Sorry.”

“No, no.” She waves it off. “Grey and I used to argue about who got to spot.”

“Spot?” you squint at her. “What do you mean?”

She looks at you, smirking. “The spotter is the better shot. Unwritten agreement anyway. Others say it’s an apprenticeship to be the spotter and the real sniper uses the weapon but we all know the spotter does the real work.” She puts her feet back down in front of her seat then says to you, “Unfortunately, we lost the spotting scope in the chaos but we can still work with binocs and a simple scope anyway and a little bit of this.” She points to her forehead.

“Right, right.”

She tilts her head. “Are you a Scout Sniper?”

“Eh?”

“Are you?”

“Well. No,” you say.

She snorts, quirking her brow. “Weird. Way you handled yourself with those Stenos in the woods, I put you above most conscript scouts.”

> “I do a lot of hunting back home. Helps keep the mind sharp.”
> “You think I could’ve been a Scout Sniper?”
> “You’re not so bad yourself.”
> Other

>>2958788
>> “I do a lot of hunting back home. Helps keep the mind sharp.”

>>2958788
>“I do a lot of hunting back home. Helps keep the mind sharp.”

>>2958788
> “I do a lot of hunting back home. Helps keep the mind sharp.”
Tell her about your hunting trip with our pal

> “I do a lot of hunting back home. Helps keep the mind sharp.”

“I do a lot of hunting back home,” you explain. “Helps keep the mind sharp, keep you alert too. Wasn’t just Bighorns we hunted back on Hopewell. There was Tiara Caribou, occasionally we dabbled with culling wild hogs on our turf as well. Farmers really love you if you clear the hogs off their farms, I used to score free meals for weeks just for a couple of days work. Hell, uh, me and my friend Hal we used to uh...” You stop yourself for a second. "We used to hunt some Caribou and hog together before I shipped out."

“I know what that’s like,” she explains. “I used to hunt Skilgin Boar back home, they’d eat everything. And they could grow to about the size of a bear if you let them.” She leans back a bit, sighing. “They make great eating though. Real fat ones have got some flavor to them. Wild animals are always the best eating, none of that ration stuff they serve in the markets.” Someone finally relates. There’s nothing more rewarding in a meal than having to kill it and butcher it yourself. “Whereabouts you from?”

“Hopewell,” you say. “You?”

“Wellesley,” she says. Wait. Isn’t Wellesley a penal colony?

“Ah. So, what did you do before you came into this?” you ask. Best not to probe about that just yet.

“Hunting just like you,” she says. “School on the side. I also got bounties.”

You look at her. What? “For what?”

“Poachers.” Oh.

“No real people?” you ask.

She smiles then looks at you. “No. Just poachers. You’d be surprised how many people fail to see the signs and obey the laws that specifically state not to hunt in these particular areas or rustle these particular livestock. Did that for a couple of years when I was school then I enlisted. After my two years were up, I enlisted again.” Enlisted again?

“How old are you?”

She looks confused when you ask that, then she says, “22.” Oh. Huh. Definitely younger than you thought honestly. “I’ve already done my two years on my second. Planning on enlisting for a third.”

“Why so?” you ask.

She glances at you. “Getting a mite personal, buddy.”

> “Sorry, I just never met anyone with that much experience personally.”
> “Sorry. I’m just suddenly much more curious now. You’re giving me more questions than answers.”
> “Sorry.” End it there. Best not to pry.
> Other

>>2958943
> “Sorry, I just never met anyone with that much experience personally.”
We're just curious, she's an interesting person.

>>2958943
>“Sorry, I just never met anyone with that much experience personally.”

> “Sorry, I just never met anyone with that much experience personally.”

“Sorry, I just never met anyone with that much experience personally,” you say. “You certainly know what you’re doing.”

“Four years in the Army will do that,” she says. “Plus, like you said, the hunting experience helps.” She glances upwards, then looks down at her hands. “I’ll admit, I really miss hunting. There’s something a bit more charming and relaxing about hunting something that isn’t trying to kill you.” You concur. Those days with Hal were always the best, just having a drink in the woods over a fire, then heading out into the forest to bag a boar or a Caribou. No worries in the world, just you, a gun, and a target. She smiles, suddenly perking up. “How do you like your venison?”

“Medium-rare,” you say.

She gently punches you, grinning. “Good man.”

“What do you mean, people eat their meat other than medium-rare?” you ask.

“I hear some people cook their meat well-done,” she says.

“… are you sure they were people?” you say back. What kind of whipped-ass motherfrakkers eat their meat well-done? That’s like sucking out all the flavor! It’s like trying to eat a belt! She snickers a little at that response. “Just saying. Yes, I like my venison medium-rare. Sometimes even rare. One time…” You snap your fingers. “Me and Hal had bagged this Bighorn, and we chopped up the meat, got some ingredients from the trader, decided to make ourselves a pie. Now, I’m not a great cook by any means. Nor was Hal. So… we had to kind of eyeball it from the recipe book we had.”

“What like a shepherd’s pie?” she says.

“Yeah. But what we had in the end was… it was frustrating because I immediately knew it was going to give me food poisoning because it looked godawful,” you explain. “I still had a taste and it was just-…” You wave it away, as if still smelling how absolutely atrocious it was. “I can’t describe it.”

“See, I can do a little cooking. As much as I can do eggs, bacon, and omelets. But that’s just stuff you do in the bush. Complicated stuff is just…” She grunts, frowning. “Out of my reach. I’d like to learn I guess.”

[1/2]

>>2959488
[2/2]

“Maybe you can ask Morrison. He mentioned being a cook before,” you say. Before you can say anything else, you hear a loud sputtering sound from one of the wheels. The Land Rover starts grinding to a halt. Uh oh. Bogged down. You already know it. You look over and see it. Yep. The wheel is sinking into the bog. But it appears to have stopped up at just a little bit of a third of the way up the wheel’s height. You look back beside you and see the rear wheels are fine. Seems the front is the only issue. Burke looks back for you while you reverse. You start trying to reverse. No dice.

Damn it. It’s stuck. And if you spin the wheels, it’ll just dig it deeper.

Burke drops out of the Land Rover, as do you. The two of you scope things out from the front. “Yeah, looks like it’s sinking slightly,” you explain. “I must have drove into a quagmire. Wasn’t paying attention. Because we were having such a lovely conversation!”

“Don’t blame me for your terrible driving,” she says. She turns to you, then says, “By the way. Quick thing. Just because we had that nice little conversation there. It doesn’t forgive the thing with your medic shooting me in the foot and basically kidnapping me.” Right. She’s not going to forget that. She starts walking towards the wheel to examine it, but then she turns around. “I’d love to talk shop about hunting more though. If you’re up to it.”

You shrug in response. She grunts, kneeling down to see how deep its going. Tombs looks over from his turret to see what’s going on, then goes back to examining the horizon.

> Wake everyone up. This is an all crew affair.
> Scout ahead. Maybe there’s a rock or a tree you can winch onto.
> Grab an emergency shovel off the Land Rover and pack in some Earth under the wheels for traction.
> Other

>>2959493
>Wake everyone up. This is an all crew affair.

> Wake everyone up. This is an all crew affair.

You slap Graves’ helmet, waking her up. “Augh, frak! Come on! I just fell asleep after listening to all your frakking flirting!” You roll your eyes then slap the back of your hand against Nielson and Tierney’s helmets too to wake them up. “Come on! What’s the hold up!”

“We’re bogged in a quagmire,” you say. “We need some elbow grease. Get out and help.” Nielson rubs his eyes, grimacing as he drops out of the Land Rover. Tierney too groans as she stretches her arms and legs. The ride has been hard on them, especially since there are no seats in the back and they have to share it with all of your supplies. If only you nabbed a Troop Transport Rover, or even an APC. That’d be quite the thing. Still, just make do. You’ll have to leave Morrison in there since he’s still wounded.

Nielson crouches down by the wheel, squinting. “Yeah, that’s stuck.” He reaches his hand into the mud then shovels some out by his palm. “Pretty slippery too. Packing it under the tire probably won’t help too much.” He points to Tierney. “Tierney, can you get the entrenching tool from the back?”

“Yeah.” Tierney reaches in and unfolds the Land Rover’s entrenching tool. She plants her feet and starts digging out a more gentler slope for the Land Rover to drive on out of the little hole it’s in. You gently test the bog for softer mud and ground. Seems this whole area is as malleable as jelly. Nielson gets into the driver’s seat.

“Tombs.” Nielson points to him then at the back. “Start pushing, will you?” He nods and jumps down. He gets to the back of the Land Rover and starts shoving the Land Rover forward ever so slightly. Tierney drops the E-Tool and grabs the side of the Land Rover to help. Burke and Graves too go for the other side. You make yourself useful too and try and help from the back with Tombs. The Land Rover rocks forward ever so slightly as you all push against it. Nielson with his driving experience tries to get the stricken vehicle out by gently pulsing the accelerator with his foot.

“Put your backs into it!” shouts Graves. “Come on!”

The Land Rover suddenly shunts forward. You all almost go falling into the mud. Nielson drives off for a few meters before taking her to a stop. Good Lord. Finally! You pat Tombs on the back, grinning at him. He simply nods, walking over to it. “Seems that foot isn’t bothering you, huh?” asks Graves to Burke.

Burke says, “I bet yours won’t either after I stab it when you sleep.”

“Ahaha, ha. Very funny,” Graves states dryly. Burke pauses, almost making Graves step into her. “Hey! Did you suddenly remember you have a foot wound? What’s wrong?” You walk up to her, interested. Burke points north-east. You squint.

There are little lights. Five of them. They aren’t moving. But they are ground level. “You think those are friendly?” she asks.

> One way to find out. Start driving towards them.
> Scope it out first with the AMP.
> Best to ignore them.
> Other

Leaving this up overnight, will update again once I'm back from work.

>>2959720
>Scope it out first with the AMP.

>>2959720
> Scope it out first with the AMP.

>>2959720
> Scope it out first with the AMP.
Let's do it boys

>>2959720
>One way to find out. Start driving towards them.

Devil's advocate here. Are we at a range where the Rover's rumbling will likely escape the notice of whatever's there? If we're going to be noticed anyway, the worst that we can expect by driving at the light is that some wildlife is pulling a will-o-the-wisp on us. Scope it en route if you like, but we can save a little time here.