*Cough*
*Cough*
*Cough*
"Another happy landing," I sputtered out, slowly dragging myself and two others out of the riverbed along the soft muddy shore.
I climbed over some roots, setting both Cal and Daisy face up on the shore before collapsing onto my butt against a tree trunk. Closing my eyes, I took several deep breaths as my lungs burned from the past events. Who knew that swimming down a river with two people in your arms would make your lungs feel like raisins?
My breathing eventually slowed, but I kept my eyes closed. Not opening them, even when I heard another two splashes come from the bank in front of me.
I had a feeling I knew who it was, but to be sure-
"Star!" I yelled, cracking my eyes open. Darkness had fully fallen, and the forest blocked out most moonlight, but the reflections off the water depicted two figures trudging toward me.
"Texas!" I heard Benjamin's voice call back, answering my challenge phrase.
I opened my eyes, listening to their boots squeak as they pushed through the soft ground toward me.
"Sitrep?" I asked hazily as both of them seemed to fall over in line with the rest of us.
"Wet...tired....hungry," Sheila said, lying on her back, "You got anything to add, Ben?"
"Nahh," it came out as a sigh, "That about sums it up,"
I sighed, rubbing my eyes, "Get the other two up, we gotta move," I said, struggling to stand back up.
"And go where? None of us can really move very far, David," Ben spoke in a particularly sharp tone. Whether it was the feeling of exhaustion or the newest setback, Benjamin had adopted a look of challenge, trying to provoke me.
"I understand," I said, trying to de-escalate the situation, "I see a gap in the cliff face over there. We'll set up camp there for the time being."
"And what then? Are we just going to hike back up the mountain and jump to our deaths again!" Benjamin continued raising his voice. It was the most he'd ever spoken up for himself, and I was almost proud in a way.
I held a hand up to stop him, "One problem at a time. Let's have dinner and a good rest, then we'll evaluate the situation in the morning. Deal?" I asked, lowering my hand to help him up.
I couldn't make out the features of his face in the shadows of the plants, but I heard a long sigh before he grabbed my hand, "Deal."
With that, Cal and Daisy were promptly woken up, and we stumbled around the bank before finally stopping below the cliffs. None of us said anything as we hiked, and while we ate, there was only silence. We catalogued what we had, and I couldn't help but feel a bit of pain. The attack had not only given us a big hit to morale, but also cost us a good bit of equipment and supplies.
I bet if this had happened a couple of months that, I would have given up. Chalked it up to bad luck and fell back to try again. Perhaps with another team.
But not now, I still had some fight in me left, and I was ready to climb back up the mountain if it was required.
=============================================================================
The next morning came, and with it a thunderstorm.
*BOOM-CRAAAK*
"Run me through the list one more time, Cal," I asked, rubbing my temples.
Cal took a bite from her MRE (Oatmeal) before clearing her throat, "We lost a rifle, 2 packs, and most items in the bags," she said with no hint of regret or loss.
"Meaning-" I began to say before getting cut off.
"Meaning we're kinda screwed, Dave," Sheila offered, finishing with her breakfast.
I gave her a wry look, "I was going to say that, that meant we would need to catch our own food from here on out."
Daisy had wandered off, leaving behind that she was going to go sit on the beach. She seemed to take our failure the hardest. She seemed to look around for the bear that I had found discreetly, only coming to grips that she had "lost" it. I hadn't found a good time to secretly return it yet.
"How are you feeling?" I looked over at Benjamin. He seemed to have gotten over his temper from the night before, even apologizing for it. So I decided to test the water's temperature to see where his head was.
"I am cold and tired, David," he said, keeping his eyes firmly placed on the dirt floor, his teeth chattering. He didn't say the words, but it was easy to tell that he wanted to quit.
I nodded, not saying anything, "And you, Sheila?" I asked.
She looked up at me with a smirk, but it wasn't the same joking on she usually had plastered on. Instead, her expression gave the impression of her saying "what do you expect?", "We gave it our best shot, Dave, but I think Mendez gave us an impossible task this time. I mean, seriously, we are just kids and he expects us to assault an outpost alone and capture it with effectively sticks and stones?"
I again nodded. Finally, I turned to Cal for her opinion.
Instead of getting the same broken and despairing look that I'd been given from the other two, she seemed to still have some brightness in her eyes, "I'll go wherever you go," she said simply.
"I see," I didn't really know how to respond, but I was grateful. I reach over grabbing my pistol giving it a couple of good shakes, and load a magazine that had been drying beside it. I felt my belt confirming that the hunting knife I had was still with me, and began walking out of the cave mouth.
"Where are you going?" I heard Benjamin ask.
I turned to face him, partly standing in the rain, "We are nearly out of food, and by this point, I doubt anyone wants to eat another MRE."
"Besides, I know what it's like to be hungry, and if I have the ability, then no one would starve on my watch." Leaving those words, I headed toward the beach
======================================================================
*SPLASH*
I lifted my spear up, pulling a small fish off the end, and grabbed it carefully by its mouth. I made my way back to shore, placing it in a small pile of other fish, "That should be enough," I said aloud to myself.
I tied my shirt around them into a sack and set the blade end of my spear down. I yanked one of my boot laces loose, and my spear tip (my hunting knife) fell into the sand. I grabbed it, wiping it on my pants leg before sheathing it and setting the sack on the now long stick. After relacing and putting on my boots, I began to head back toward our camp.
The rain was still falling, but was a bit lighter than earlier. It was now a bit after midday; if I had to guess, it was hard to tell where the sun was due to the cloud cover. Goosebumps from the cold prickled my arms and torso, but it could still be worse.
"Hmm?" While walking along the beach, I spotted Daisy sitting by the shore tossing what looked like rocks at the waves coming in ferocious swells. She hadn't noticed me yet, and from her body language, it seemed that something was still bothering her.
I paused, 'Do I leave her be, or try and help?' The fishing had been helpful to me; it was calming and allowed me to organize my thoughts. Before, I was already in a much better headspace, but now? Now I could climb up that mountain myself with nothing more than a pistol and a knife if it meant I could capture that flag. Needless to say, I felt in tip-top shape, but my team didn't share my feelings.
'What would Mendez do?' he'd probably tell her to "Suck it up, buttercup," or something along those lines. Which didn't seem appropriate.
My mind wandered as I considered, and eventually I asked myself, 'What would Lieutenant Keyes do?' I hadn't spent long with him, but between him and Mendez, the Lieutenant was more like my father, even though I hadn't spent much time with him.
'He'd probably go over and at least talk to her. So let's try that,' shaking my shoulder, holding the stick and fish, I hopped over a small dune. The water was flowing into my boots from the crashing waves.
Not too long after that, I found myself plopped down beside Daisy fish properly secured and beside me.
*SPLASH*
Another stone left her hand, and she stayed silent, "Wonderful weather we're having, huh?" I said, trying to lighten the mood. Sadly, all I got was a nod in response.
'This is going to be harder than I thought,'
"Why don't we go back. The others should have a fire started, and I got enough fish to last us through dinner," I offered.
"No thanks," my lips thinned into a frown after being shot down again. I glanced at the dark sky, water dripping down my shaven head, when a thought came to mind. My hand traced my belt, finding a magazine-less pouch.
"By the way, you dropped something," I said, pulling the bear out, holding it by its key chain. Daisy slightly turned her head, and the somber look she had evaporated as her eyes widened. She didn't lunge for it or yank it out of my hand; instead softly accepted it, cradling it gently.
"Mr. Alexander…I thought I'd lost him," she spoke barely above a whisper. Still shocked that her item had been returned.
The name was all I needed to confirm a suspicion I had been having. For a minute, I thought of telling her that this, the Spartan training, wasn't the first time we'd met. Ultimately, I decided against it; there'd be another time.
She sat holding it, and I was beside her watching the ocean. I waited. A minute passed- maybe even two, and finally-
"Thank you," she said in a low voice, "My parents… this is all I have left of them,"
"I-I'm sorry for this," she held out the bear with her hand. Her voice cracking, "I-I know we-we'd get in a lot of trouble, b-but" her voice trailed off.
"I understand. I miss mine too," I put a hand on her shoulder in support.
She wiped her face, but because of how wet she was from the rain, she only smeared droplets of water around. Some filled with dirt streaked down her cheeks, "C-can I be honest w-with you for a moment, David?" she asked, looking at me with big eyes.
I raised an eyebrow. I had a feeling I wasn't going to like what she wanted to confess. Still, I motioned for her to continue.
"R-Ralph, m-me, and a couple others have been planning to run away," my heart ran cold at the statement, but Daisy continued, "They took us from our homes, barely feed us, beat us when we do something wrong, and so-so much more," with each word her voice rose an octave in anger.
I stayed silent as she spoke. That's treason. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I didn't dare condemn her. It was true after all. Just because I never had the thought to escape doesn't mean that the others haven't.
But I still was a bit confused, "Why are you telling me this, Daisy?" I had to ask; so far, she had no reason to be telling me this, especially now.
"Because I want you to come with us," that caught my attention. "We'll get away from here and link back up with our parents. They wouldn't dare take us away again. It would be too risky-"
Daisy began to ramble about… a fairytale in my eyes. So I raised my hand to stop her and spoke up, "My parents are dead, Daisy." Her eyes went wide at that, and I spoke with a narrowed look, "I understand you. Really, I do, maybe if my parents were still around, I'd agree to it. But now, the UNSC Reach Fleetcom Training Facility is my home,"
"B-but then you could come live with me and my parents then-" she blurted out. It was honestly surprising how her mood seemed to have done a complete 180 from what it was earlier.
"The fire is gone, Daisy. I cannot replace my parents. Halsey can act like my mother, but she will never be my mom. Mendez can act like my dad, but he will never replace my true father," I told her. "But if you are certain that's what you want to do. Then I have only one request. Stick it out for this test, help the rest of us pass. Do that, and I'll be sure to look the other way when you slip away one day,"
"Go ahead back, get dry, or else you will get sick. With this little revelation, I've got some things to think about," I ordered, turning away from her to stare at the ocean, kneeled in gentle swell.
======================================================================
Not long after Daisy left, I followed. I got to the cave just as the clouds began to break, shedding some light from the setting sun. It was still raining, but it had slowed to a mere drizzle now.
I took the time to fashion five separate skewers, torching the wood to be black, a simple and quick way to sanitize them. Immediately after, I began to gut and prepare the fish. Daisy helped, thankfully, but we didn't say anything about our conversation on the beach.
Before long, it turned dark, and five skewers with various fish meat impaled on them were driven into the ground over the fire. I'd changed into some clothes that were dry, throwing the wet ones into a bag.
We sat around the fire eagerly waiting for the fish to be done. Since everyone was no longer wet and cold, and the fact that they now had a fresh dinner to look forward to, the mood had picked up quite a bit. Yet, there was still a hint of dread that filled the cave, and it came as the knowledge that everyone knew we had to go back up that mountain.
Because of that, I decided to rip the band-aid off and be a leader.
"Alright, we need to talk about the elephant in the room," I said, grabbing everyone's attention. Benjamin and Sheila seemed weary, while Daisy and Cal were intrigued, Cal more than Daisy, who seemed to carry a glint of guilt in her eyes.
"But before that-Sheila you asked me where I was from. I am guessing you want to hear more about my life before the program, right?" She gave me a nod; her body language engaged with what I was saying.
"Well, before the program, I lived outside a city on one of the outer colony planets. My parents studied exotic plants, causing us to move around a lot, so I don't exactly have a home planet like you guys. But I had gotten a couple of awards for my grades. I won't say what they were as they don't exactly matter much now,"
"One day…." I paused. I sighed as I swallowed the little bit of saliva left in my dry mouth, 'They're my family now. I can tell them,' finally, I began to retell the events that happened the day my parents died.
Shades of shock reflected in their face, but all seemed to take what I said seriously. Meanwhile, I stood cross-armed, killing any emotion that tried to arise as I told the story. Now was not the time to be lost in my emotions as I told them this for a reason.
"... I don't say this to ask for pity. I don't want you to treat me any differently than before I told you this," I sighed once more, my face hardened, and my brow scrunched as I tried to find the best words.
"I say this so that you all know I consider you family. Mendez would crucify me if he heard me say this, but you four are just as important to me as the mission. A victory without all of us at the finish line is no victory at all."
I looked over at Sheila, "You said earlier we are kids; I say no, we're not, we are Spartans. Whether we have to climb up a mountain under fire, or swim through a river carrying others.
We. Don't. Quit.
We endure and do what needs to be done," I reached down, picking up a freshly cooked fish skewer, "As evidenced by this. I bet when Mendez and the other instructors were setting this exercise up and had it in their mind that this is impossible for us to complete,"
I shrugged, setting this fish down, "Maybe it is. Maybe they created this in order to break us and test our will. But I don't care,"
I brought my foot up on a rock that I had been using as a seat, "Whether I have rifles or rocks, MREs or scraps, I'll climb up the mountain and we'll take that flag. Why? Because you all will be beside me,"
"Now tomorrow morning at dawn, I am going to wake up on our last day of this exercise. I am going to eat a light breakfast, prep only the essential gear, and I am going to go wage a war on anyone who comes in between me and that damn flag."
I turned my eyes, panning from left to right. From Benjamin to Sheila to Daisy in the back and finally to Cal beside me, "And I would love it if you all would come with me. So, are you in?"
After I finished, there was silence. Each of my team members seemed to be thinking to themselves as their gazes were no longer directed at me. I can't help but say that my heart raced as I waited. I was serious when I said that I what I would be doing, but I would certainly feel better to have them watching my back.
Finally, one by one:
"I am with you," Cal said at first with a small smile.
Benjamin reached down, plucking a fish skewer, "Let's do it then,"
Sheila grinned, "Don't count me out. It wouldn't be much fun if I weren't there,"
That was 3 out of 4. Only Daisy remained.
We all turned to look at her, but only I recognized the guilt in her eyes. She seemed to be carefully thinking, her eyes almost in a daze. Until finally they hardened with resolve, the guilt seemingly being replaced with determination. Then she looked at me, almost making my heart skip a beat as she said:
"I'm in."
==================================================================
So we got this chapter and one more then it's off to augmentations. As of now that is exactly 3 chapters. And after we have the battle of Chi Ceti kicking off the Human-Covenant war.
Anyway see ya soon.