After what seemed like hours, I finally saw movement. As I drew nearer, I recognized the figure as an elite. He gave one last look around, and entered the pod. The Covenant were leaving. A feeling of relief washed over me. Then I realized why they were leaving. Turning from the pod, I ran for the hangar. They had what they wanted, this ship wasn't going to last much longer. Vague memory guided me through the halls as my lungs burned from the strain. My mind blocked out the bodies of the marines that littered the hall, psychological blinders keeping my focus on escape. Finally, I reached the hangar, only two pelicans left. "Come on, kid!" Luck called from the hangar floor. "We need to get the [i]hell[/i] outta here!" I leaped down the stairs in a desperate attempt to get there faster. The second pelican belonged to the Spartans, and they were waiting as well. Looking toward the exit, I saw the Covenant ship let off a blast of plasma. As it raced towards us, I neared my escape. It slammed into the ship as I dove for the pelican, grabbing hold of a hydraulic lift as the atmosphere was sucked from the ship. "Pull him in!" I heard someone yell as my hand slipped from the lift, the pull of vacuum picking my feet up into the air. As my hand released its grip, a firm hand grasped my shirt, tossing me into the pelican. I grabbed a harness as I turned to see the Spartan. "Get out of here, now!" his deep voice ordered, the door to the pelican already closing. I looked up to see Luck next to me, a different pilot at the helm. Looking through the windshield, I watched a fiery streak pierce the Covenant vessel, a slug from a Mass Driver on the surface of the planet. As the adrenaline subsided, my fatigue came in fast, vision fading to black as I lay on the cold metal grating of the pelican's floor. My eyes drooped and I dissolved into unconsciousness. "Stay with me, kid!" Luck's voice sounded in the blackness "Kid! Jonathan! Jonathan!... Roland! Stay with me Roland! Roland!... ------- "Roland!" a much older voice rang in my ears as I came around. "Roland!" Luck's voice came again, this time louder. I felt a pressure in my hand, and my eyes opened. As my vision came back, I saw Luck pulling me from the rubble, Collins standing close behind her. "Roland, you alright?" Luck asked me, relief showing on her face. [i]Never better[/i] I tried to joke, but only coughs came out, my lungs purging the dust from my body. I looked around and saw Nurse Balehnco tending to a few survivors. Young and Tanner were supporting the Major between them, and Reynolds was helping the Nurse. I coughed again, this time able to ask a question. "Where's Duncan? Stone, Strauss, Bishop?" "Stone and Strauss are further up in the rubble, looking for more survivors. We haven't found the ODSTs yet. They were in a different part of the complex" Luck answered solemnly. As Luck and I struggled to pull the rest of me out of the rubble, I realized how few had survived. Only a handful of the injured lay, moaning, on the jagged rocks. Many more bodies lay silent, too few sheets to cover them all. I looked myself over, finding no wounds. Amazed, I looked back at the small crater that I had just been exhumed from, the gurney I had dove under mangled by the weight of the rock. That gurney had saved me, holding enough pressure away to keep me from being crushed. Looking down to my wrist, I noticed that my wrist computer had once again been wiped by the EMP. I pulled out the AI chip that housed Asclepius, the light in the center no longer lit. "The EMP must have wiped him" Nurse Balehnko noted as she passed by, her tone soft and sympathetic. "Are you sure you're good, Roland?" Luck asked once more. "Yeah," I answered, sliding the AI chip back into my pocket "thanks. See if you can help search for more survivors." Luck gave a somber nod and walked off in the direction of Strauss. I looked back again at the gurney, running through the map of CLINIC Base in my mind. Following the floor plan of the demolished labyrinth, I tried my best to recollect the location of the generator room. I surveyed the rubble that surrounded me, looking for any sign of the ODSTs. After a few minutes, I heard a muffled pop behind me. I stopped, keeping the sound of my own footsteps from interfering. Silence, then another pop. I turned and tried to trace the sound, not sure what it was. Suddenly, the familiarity of the sound rang in my ears: it was gunfire. I got down on my knees and started tossing pieces of the mountain out of the way. Finally, an arm burst from the stone before me, and I pulled Duncan from the rubble, closely followed by Bishop and Jinn. Both ODSTs removed their helmets and took deep breaths. "Took you long enough!" Duncan managed to speak "We were running out of ammo." The Lieutenant, gave a brief smile and we joined the others, looking for any other survivors. ------- We all sat, huddled, around the bonfire as the cold night set in. I saw Nurse Balehnco through the flames, her head resting on Reynolds's shoulder. Her responsibility to the injured soldiers was over. All of those that were pulled from the rubble had perished before sundown. Her tears shone a glistening red and orange as the fire flickered before them. Next to her sat Luck, staring into the distance with a look of sorrow on her face. Duncan, Collins, and the Major sat around a radio, half-crushed by the rubble and fried by the EMP, they had little hope, if any, of getting it to work. The others: Bishop, Strauss, Tanner, Jinn, Young and Stone were moving the bodies, laying them in rows to be buried in the rubble. I sat in shock, still half in disbelief from the sudden and unexpected attack. My eyes strained, unfocused, into the dark night sky as my mind refused to function. Suddenly my eye's caught on a light. What was it? A shooting star, a chunk of space debris arcing through the sky? I absentmindedly pondered the light until the sound grew loud enough to notice. Almost as if a switch had been turned, all focus turned to the approaching light, and the Albatross attached to it. As it came in closer for a landing, struggling to to find an area flat enough to do so, the realization appeared to sink in, and looks of relief washed over a few of our faces. Our reinforcements had arrived, but only in time to count the dead. I was glad that they were late. There would have been nothing they could have done against a glassing. Those of us that survived only did so because of the mountain in the Covenant's way. The rubble shifted as the immense weight of the aircraft settled down a few meters from our fire. I stood, looking over to Commander Collins as the door hissed open. Salutes sprung up all around as General Kaiso himself stepped onto the crumbling rock. His eyes scanned our small group, lingering on Collins, then me, sadness weighing visibly on his brow. Collins took the first steps towards the Albatross, and Duncan, Salvich, and I followed suit. "Are these all the survivors?" He asked once we were close. "Unfortunately, sir. They torched the mountain. The entire base collapsed on top of us. Those of us that are still here are luckier than most." Collins answered. "That, I can see." Kaiso sighed, his eyes gazing past us to the rows of the dead. "If I'd have know what the outcome would be, I'd have brought water and bandages, not bullets and explosives." Kaiso looked at each of us, then spoke again. "I have room on the Albatross for your group. My men will spend the night burying the dead. These men fought to their last breaths, despite their wounds. They at least deserve a burial. You four and your men have earned a rest. We'll dust off in the morning, and I'll take you back to HIGHCOM." We nodded, gave another round of salutes, then turned to spread the word. As we walked back to the bonfire, Kaiso addressed Collins once more. "Commander," Collins turned back to the General "do you think we can win this war?" Collins stood silent for a moment before sounding his reply. "I don't know General. What I do know, is that every single one of these men fought to their dying breath to protect the rest of us, and that I will gladly do the same." Collins swept his arm in the direction of the deceased. "Can the Covenant say the same? General, I don't know whether or not we can win this war. But I do know that the Covenant are going to have to go through hell to make us lose it." "I hope you're right Commander." The General nodded slowly as Collins' words sank in. "For all of our sakes, I hope to God you're right." [Edited on 02.19.2012 1:18 PM PST]