I could hear nothing but the wind blowing against our airship, as me and a few other soldiers were being transported to the battlefield.
Last night went by in a complete blur, as I couldn't sleep for the long hours before the battle today. I was away from the reaches of the base. Away from Priscilla, and heading to a zone where the Plague could potentially capture me and claim me as their own.
It was dead silent within the ship. Occasionally a lump of turbulence would knock me out of my trance, but otherwise I was a nervous wreck the entire time. I could sense it in the soldiers next to me as well.
Elaine and I had said our goodbyes following the planning meeting at the base. I was sure to hug her tight, because I didn't know if I was going to come back okay. As much as she told me I would return, I still was doubtful.
I kept running the battle strategy over and over again in my head. Wes had spoken wise words to us last night. While this may not be a very significant battle, the small victory would get us much needed supplies for the Rebels. The extra firepower would boost their weaponry and hopefully take out some key Plague points in the country.
"Say, you're the hero mutant, aren't ya?" An older man questions from across my position. Everyone including me looks at him, his accented voice shredding the looming silence. I nod, giving him a small smile and he laughs. "I could tell. There's enough armor on you only to stop a damn mosquito bite!" He jokes, which gets me and a couple of the men laughing.
He was correct. I was wearing military boots, some cargo pants, a tan long-sleeved shirt along with a light, bulletproof vest above it. I was extremely out of place with the men next to me wearing full metallic armor that could prevent third degree burns.
"Wes really sent me on a suicide mission, I guess," I say jokingly causing a few more rounds of chuckles. The silence falls upon us once more as the pilot gives us a three-minute warning.
"Well," the man says across from me. "If I go down, at least I can say I went down fighting with a superhero in heaven." He fiddles with a golden cross necklace just below his armor, and my eyes widen.
"Hey," I say reassuringly. "As long as I'm here, they have no interest in killing you. I'll be surprised if I make it out all in one piece by the end of this, to be frank. You guys are some of the most skilled fighters out there. For crying out loud, can take a whole ship down if you put your heart's to it! Don't ever think that negatively of yourself."
"One minute till landing!" The shrill voice of the captain says through our earpieces making us cringe. Out our small window, we were about to land in a secluded, grassy field miles away from the nearest city district.
"Thank you," the man across from me says. "Thank you for fighting for our cause." He pauses, lowering his voice slightly. "My wife was a mutant," he softly whispers. "She had no damn idea either. The Plague had showed up at her workplace to do them check things, and she was immediately taken away. A guard came to my door later that night," he pauses, unsure if he could finish. "He said that my wife was an impurity to our civilization. And the audacity... I wanted to shoot him down right there. That's why I'm here today. I'm fightin' for my wife who's watching us from above, and she'd be hella proud of you for everything you've done."
My heart seemed to melt as I had gotten so lost in the story, I didn't notice the back door had opened. I nod solemnly to him, thanking him back for fighting.
And with one leap out of the metal ship, the soft, earthy field hit my feet.
I was instantly in love. Being cooped up in that metal, underground base for two months was horrible. It was like a dream come true, breathing the fresh earthy air once more.
Squadrons of soldiers began their march through the long, tall grass. I stayed towards the front, in case a random attack were to occur. There were hundreds of us, to say the least.
The commander at the front of the line held his fist up in the air, signaling for us to halt. The sounds of our footsteps cease, and the sound of Plague airships echo through our ears.
"The four Plague airships are simply on patrol," a voice rings though our earpieces. "Rebel warships are on their way as I speak to take them down."
And sure enough, coming from behind us at full speed, were six warships pained blue, arms loaded and ready to take down the miniature Plague ships.
We were under two miles from the base. While the simple, metal-barricaded building didn't look like much on the outside, we were currently standing above a massive room miles long full of ammunition.
Suddenly, a shrill alarm began to sound from the base, as blaring red lights surround the perimeter. This attack had been specifically executed during the day so that the ground troops wouldn't be seen by the massive spotlights at night that surrounded the base for miles.
"Keep moving!" Whispers the ground commander through our earpieces, and as we crouch we keep our eyes on the air fight the entire time.
The Plague ships were now circling in their positions to get in formation against our ships. It was a fairly impressive maneuver to watch, as the ships flew so closely together I could've sworn they were going to crash.
The first ones to fire their weapons would be The Rebels. Three large, hollow blasts echo through the sky as missiles project towards Plague ships. While many were able to dodge in time, one of The Plague ships was too late to change courses.
And in a flash, one of The Plague ships came down with a fiery explosion.
"That's what I'm talking about, baby!" Shouts the air general through our earpieces, earning silent cheers from the ground troops.
Both Plague and Rebel ships were circling back around in the sky, causing echoes of their loud engine sounds to rattle the ground. It was a 5v3 now, with the Rebels having the advantage. More shots were fired between the ships, as laser cannons began firing out of their sides. Maybe I lived in the junkyard for too long, because this was one of the most epic things I had ever seen.
This time, two more Plague ships came down. One had smoke billowing out of its left wing, while the other simply blew up in midair. The Plague ship with the broken wing was coming dangerously close to us with no control over its direction.
"Everybody get down!" The general shouts, and in an instant we all fall to our stomachs. The broken ship was probably only forty feet above us as the ear-piercing roar of the engine caused me to cover my ears. Adrenaline spiked through me as an explosion occurred just feet away.
We all got back up shakily, before a message once again rang in our earpieces.
"That was a close one, guys." But this time it wasn't Wes. It was the sweet, loving voice of Priscilla that calmed my nerves in an instant. "Keep on going. Our heat monitors have only picked up just a few heat signatures just outside of the base. They are on guard, but you all should easily be able to take them out. Best of luck!"
Looking ahead from our position in the field we were just a mile away from the Plague base now. As long as no reinforcements came for the time being we would be safe.
But of course, I spoke too soon.
Far away in the distance, were a whole flock of Plague airships were flying at Rebel ships in the air, full speed. They were probably twice as fast as our ships, as murmurs began to start amongst the ground troops.
"Rebel back up forces, coming in hot!" The air general says over the mic, and looking back West, sure enough there were even more Rebel ships varying in size coming towards us. And by the looks of the bad boy guns on them, some of those ships could do some serious damage.
"Ground troops, we have a problem." The familiar voice of Wes says through the mic, his voice slightly panicked. "Dozens of Plague soldiers just popped up on our radar from the base. They must have seen your heat signatures on a radar, and they're fully equipped with weaponry. Proceed with caution. They won't go down without a fight."
"Mara," Priscilla says through my mic. I looked around to see if anyone else had heard her words, and realized she had accessed some kind of private channel with me. "Break away from this group and join the ground units in the middle of the battlefield. That way we can get the attention on you, and Hudson will show up."
The grass surrounding us was thick and tall, and we could hardly see each other through it. I slowly but stealthily move towards the outer rim of our pack making sure not to make suspicious eye contact with anyone. And with one simple quick slide, I had broken off from the rest of the soldiers and now was on a hot pursuit towards the center of the field.
The grass was beginning to become shorter with each large step I took, allowing me to see everything in a much clearer view.
I suddenly stopped in my position, as I saw some kind of rectangular ships land that were labeled with the Plague logo. The back hatches of the ship suddenly open, and in the back were dozens of Plague soldiers equipped with what looked like metal helmets and armor. They each contained the same weapon, and one by one they began to line up in an attack formation.
Just about a half mile away, the same kind of ship this time labeled with the Rebel symbol. There had to be only 6 of those ships while the Plague had at least 10. I gulped, we were definitely outnumbered on this one.
Plague soldiers began to line up, and I could hear the faint yelling of a Rebel general from where I was.
"Shields up!" The general shouts, and suddenly a thick of golden light appears just in front of our forces. My eyes widen as I realize the weapon they had was a force field wall, something that the Plague scientists had struggled to invent for years. A scientist at the Rebel base must have figured it out, because even the Plague didn't have that kind of technology yet.
"Aim at the traitors, and fire at will!" The Plague general rages, pacing back and forth on the battlefield, seemingly unaware that he could be shot. General. That reminded me, for all I knew Hudson wasn't at the battle. Yet. And I hoped that I would be able to get his attention sometime soon.
When the first shot of a laser gun sounded, that was my cue to go. Running East towards where the Plague front line was, I drew my sword, and waited for the general to stop pacing back and forth. The grass was now just tall enough to hide my body, but just short enough to see.
I said a prayer in my head, before leaping out of the grass and charging at the metallic soldiers.
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Dun dun dunnnnn...