Tales from the RP

The Town Entrance 4 (Maxine Rowe)

April 11th 2558

2 minutes ago we saw the boy go into the house, we'd been clearing houses one by one as we went by. I felt the urge to puke catching up to me as I get behind the tank and pull my helmet off. I then throw up onto the ground. "Hey Private, you're alright." I feel someone pat my back as I throw up more. When I look up I see the MARK 6 helmet of my Captain. "Come on, just push through it, you'll be alright." Groves says as I dry heave now. "JUPITER, COME HERE!" A marine shouts as a Spartan runs over to them. "Just found them both dead, I heard crying between the two bodies though. Could be a kid." The marine says, the Spartan then starts pulling the dead bodies apart until an explosive went off, they trapped the dead civilians. Then gunfire erupted from the buildings in front of us. "GET DOWN!" Groves shouts as he pushes me down onto the road before getting down next to me. I try to get my helmet on but I'm shaking too much. Groves then quickly makes me look at him before he slips my helmet on. "YOU'RE GONNA BE FINE, JUST FOCUS!" He shouts over the gunfire, I find myself looking back to where Jupiter was only to see his fragmented helmet and armour. My eyes widen a bit as the realisation hits me and I get up a bit and start returning fire, Groves soon joins me. "Delta 1, is everything okay, we just heard an explosion?" Watts' voice can be heard saying. "DELTA 2, WE'RE CAUGHT IN AN AMBUSH, KEEP PUSHING THROUGH, DELTA 1 OUT!" Groves says before he throws a grenade over the tank. I feel the tank recoil after making a shot and I pop up to shoot, seeing the tanks gunner slumped to the side dead. I get back into cover. "SIR, OUR GUNNER IS DEAD!" I shout and Groves looks at me. "HARPER, I NEED A SMOKE GRENADE IN FRONT!" Groves shout. "COPY THAT SIR!" Harper shouts back as I hear a smoke grenade go off. "HEY, GET ON THAT GUN ROWE, WE'LL COVER YOU!" Groves shouts. I feel my body move on its own as I jump up onto the tank and shoot an Order marine in the head with my rifle before I pull the dead marine out the gunner, then the tank fires again and I fall a bit. Quickly recovering I jump into the gun and take a few deep breaths as the smoke clears, and then I start firing. Pinning down enemy forces in the streets while marines and Spartans start pushing up, Groves spearheading it with 8. They then enter a building on the left. "BUILDING ON THE RIGHT HAS HOSTILES, FIRE FOR EFFECT!" I shout at the tank driver before hearing the barrel turn and the blast of the tank firing above me as the building crumbles. I then see a couple frags land behind the cover the hostile soldiers are using in the streets, some get up to run so I gun them down, the grenade then goes off and body parts go flying. "CLEAR!" I hear Groves shout. I starts taking in quick deep breaths before my breathing slows as I calm down. "Hey, you good?" I hear a voice say, I look up to see a Spartan in full Warrior looking down at me. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine thanks." I say. They then hold their hand out to help me out the turret, I accept the help as they pull me out. "Nice work there, Rowe was it?" He asks. "Yeah, well Maxine is my first name sir." I say and he nods. "John Harper, nice to meet you." He says as he nods to me. "Nice to meet you too sir." I say. "I'm a corporal, not much of a higher up, just call me Harper." He says. "Got it." I say as we both jump down from the tank. I look around, we had lost 8 marines and 3 Spartans. Holy fuck. I let out a sigh and I reload before I take my place behind the Captain again, this was going to be a long trip.