Fireteam

Chapter One

They were surrounded-- Hive swarmed the terrain around them. The fireteam desperately tried to hold onto the small base they had made in an old tailors shop. They knew now that their mission was an impossible one; their only hope was to survive until the evac.

It was the Warlock, Sodren Reev, who got them into this mess. He hadn't calculated the thousands of Hive that would be waiting for them inside the Comsodrome, and he certainly didnt have a backup plan. The fireteam had staked out the place for a week and saw very little Hive activity. The ambush certainly came as a surprise.

Now the three Guardians were firing a storm of bullets into the swarm. The Titan, an EXO, created a bubble shield and reloaded her guns.  Her companions took shelter inside as well. They could all hear bullets pounding the outside of the shield.

"What's the plan, Reev?" the Hunter, a human,asked as he readied his Golden Gun. He leaned out of the shield and fired his weapon thrice -- at a Wizard and two Knights.

"We hold our ground until Shaun can get us out of here," the Warlock answered.

"That's it? That's your plan? Typically your plans are longer and more complex than that," the Titan said while throwing a grenade out of the protective bubble.

"Unless you've got a better plan, Vix-76, its the one were going with," replied Sodren. "Walters," he addressed the Hunter, "I need you to cause a diversion. Something to draw away the Hive so Shaun can bring the ship in. Vix, you cover him-- make sure he doesn't die. I'll take care of any stragglers that prevent the ship from landing."

"Got it." Walters reloaded his side arm with lightning speed before sprinting out of the bubble shield and pushing his way through the crowd of aliens. He jumped over their heads to avoid bullets that were aimed towards him.

He made it to a rock that jutted out over the heads of the swarm. "Hey, uglies! Why don't y'all focus your attentions on something pretty!" Walters taunted them in an attempt to draw Hive fire. Suddenly, thousands of guns were aimed at the Hunter.

"Oh cr--!" Walters sprinted in the opposite direction of the rest of his fire team, inciting the chase.

"That's one way to get the job done," Vix muttered, using her sniper to pick off Acolytes from a distance.

A voice crackled in through Sodrens com as he fended off several charging Thralls. "Sodren, the landing site is clear. Bringing the ship into the atmosphere now."

Reev relayed the message to his team. He could see Walters give him a quick thumbs up before dispatching and Acolyte who got too close. Vix nodded in confirmation and he could hear Walters let out a short relieved huff.

The Warlock looked at his radar. A dot on the screen was approaching rapidly. 'That's Shaun,' he thought.

He watched the sky, expecting to see his ship, the Waning Star, on the horizon. What he saw was in no way what hed hoped for. Half a dozen Hive drop ships were bringing in reinforcements.

"No, no, no!" exclaimed Sodren anger boiling up inside of him. 'We are already barely hanging on. More enemies would...' he didn't want to think about it.

"We have to hold out a bit longer than we thought," Sodren informed over the coms.

"I dont think I can, Reev," Walters muttered. "I'm runnin' low on bullets and I'm surrounded."

"Don't think that way, Kev. Shaun will be here in just a moment, I'm sure. You just need to hang on until then."

Kevin Walters loaded his last clip, a wry smile on his face. As his mag quickly emptied, the swarm of Hive around him thickened.

"Hey Reev, tell Layla I love her, and check in on the kids every now and then, all right?"

The Hunter vanished into the writhing mass of enemies. Vix, who had been trying his hardest to cover Walters up until this point, let out an enraged cry.

"No!" she shrieked. "I'm not giving up on you, Walt!"

The Titan dashed from her hiding spot. She sprinted madly to where her friend had been consumed by the horde. She mowed down Thralls and Acolytes with her auto rifle, wasting bullets at a remarkable speed.

It was too late for Sodren to stop the loyal EXO, not that she would have listened anyway. "Vix, get back here! You'll die just like he did! Walters wouldn't want that!"

There was no reply. The com was silent. Sodren couldn't see her through the swarm of Hive. He couldn't even see the fire from her weapon.

"Vix! Come in!"

Still silence.

More and more Hive dropped down from the ships. He was alone against thousands of enemies.

"Sodren, I'm here, a robotic voice crackled through the com."

A small space ship landed behind Sodren. He climbed in through the cargo bay and the Waning Star took off immediately. The Hive horde parted briefly, and for a moment Sodren could see them. The two bullet-ridded corpses of a Titan and a Hunter.