They’re playing games with us, finding Eva again was far too
easy in all this brush. They led us here, and I should have picked up on it,
but I was too eager. As soon as we neared Eva gunfire erupted around us from
different directions. The Vaznians don’t use guns. They’re all psionics, all
the time. As we huddle together on the ground I realize I’ve been hit. Nothing
serious and the suit molds around the wound taking care of it. The gunfire goes
uninterrupted, nobody is firing those guns. We’re taking hits and haven’t
actually faced anyone yet.
During the gunfire Casey had been checking on Eva. She
didn’t make it. She had new injuries before we returned and had died leaned
against a log. For some reason, she was smiling. I’ll never know what she saw
in those final moments, but I know I’ll see her face the next few moments I try
to sleep. She was probably feeling some kind of hallucinogenic, at least
they’re kind when they kill us, except when they have guns like us. I should
have considered it earlier.
Vaznians don’t use guns, that means there’s either someone
else working with them, or they took them from other people who tried to stop
them. If I could see the guns, I could tell where they came from. I knew there
was something more to this mission, we’re just pawns to them out here and now
Eva is dead because they had to keep secrets.
“Keep low, and watch for trip wires or any other triggers,”
the only advice I can give to the squad.
We move quickly towards the cave Creed had marked for me. My
armor is actively fighting with me at this point. A small wound will ruin
lightweight armor, but the medium gear I usually equip would have taken the
shot like it was nothing. I’m just glad it wasn’t enough to slow me down more.
A group of trees bend and block our path right in front of
ours. This is the Vaznians work, forcing us to regroup and find a new way
around in unfamiliar territory. Gun shots start to ring out again and we rush
for cover. Casey and I are pinned down behind a fallen log, Habeeb has his back
to a tree and Faramund is ducking behind a boulder.
“Who has thermal adapters for their guns,” I ask the group.
“We can’t do that. We’ll burn the whole jungle down,” Casey
objects.
“I’d rather burn this place down than die,” I equip my
thermal adapter.
“Finally,” Faramund follows suit.
Habeeb doesn’t hesitate but Casey gives it thought before equipping
his as well. Thermal adapters allow the bullets fired to carry heat forward
from the barrel of the gun reaching temperatures as high as four-hundred
degrees. I don’t know much about science, but that should be enough to start a
few small fires. They’ll focus on the fires, allowing us to escape.
“Most of the gun shots seem to be coming from that way,”
Casey points to a dense section of forest.
“Next time there’s a break in gun fire, light it up,” I
scream as their guns growl at us.
As soon as there’s a pause I pop out and open fire, unsure
if there’s anyone out there still. The rest of the squad fires alongside me.
The brush doesn’t burn right away but slowly embers start to fill the
direction. One thing is sure, there’s nobody shooting back anymore. I don’t
wait until I need to reload, I take off running and shout for the others to
follow me.
Earlier we had been cutting down vines and anything else in
our way. Now we just run through without pause. Casey falls but doesn’t
complain, he stands back up, grabs his gun and keeps moving. He doesn’t want to
die here anymore than anyone else. He knows we view him as the weakest link,
but he won’t be that right now. Faramund provides some backing fire. I still
think he’s gun crazed but, in this moment, I appreciate his love of violence.
To me the gunshots are a fleeting reminder of the fact that
death can be waiting for us at any moment. Any of us could end up like Eva if
we’re not careful, or if we’re just caught off guard. Every gunshot is a
reminder of the chaotic nature of this situation. We’re running for our lives
through a foreign land on a mission that was a death sentence from the start.
But to Faramund, the shots are ASMR, calming his nerves, likely erotic to him,
better than sex. If it gets me to safety, then I’ll take it, I’ll play along in
his fetish for violence. Still, they’re cutting us off at every turn. They
don’t where we’re running, but they’re trying to lead us somewhere and I refuse
to be led to my death. I am not cattle, I will not die without fighting.
“Fire in every direction,” I demand.
We’re running through the forest firing at no target in
particular, starting fires in each direction. Our footsteps quickly filled with
destruction. From the outside we look like a bunch of mad men firing at the
thought of enemies, but in my mind we’re on our way to being survivors.
“Keep moving, the cave is near,” I yell over the firing.
They stop firing and keep moving, I’m sure they misheard me.
My ears are buzzing with the world around me muffled from the sounds of the
constant gun shots, and the sound of my heartbeat in my ears. I haven’t run
like this since I was training and I can feel myself ready to vomit like my first
time through the Hafengdan. These will not be the last moments of my life, I
will not die reliving memories of the past. I will leave to make new ones.
“Go deep and watch for pursuers,” we reach the mouth of the
cave and dive into the darkness.
We all take up firing positions. I’m laying on my stomach
staring down the scope of my rifle ready to fire on anyone pursuing us. We stay
there, peering into the darkness of the forest waiting for any monster to step
through to be murdered by our will to live. Nothing comes, but we don’t relax,
we don’t speak. There’s nothing to say, any injuries can wait, and there’s no
snacks, so there’s no need to ask. If you wish to bring me death, I wish you
the same. I have no illusions of immortality, they were stripped away long ago.
I will leave this planet. Any act I make is an act of desperation. I’ll do
anything to survive no matter if its impossible, or forbidden.
