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Closing with the Enemy Chapter 6 Night Fighters
Posted By: monitor101<wasup1989@hotmail.com>
Date: 6 December 2003, 11:22 PM
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(Firebase Echo base HQ, planet Jericho II, grid fifteen by twenty five, sector four, three miles north of Firebase Delta, 2010 hours, year 2552, Lieutenant Wilson)
Wilson hid behind the tree as a volley of purple plasma bolts whined past, inches from his head. He crawled out from behind the tree and opened fire at a large red blob on his eye piece, which was set on thermal vision. He stopped firing as soon as the blob went from red to blue. He dove behind the tree and more plasma splashed against the thick trunk.
Every time a muzzle flash could be seen the position where it had come from was sprayed with plasma fire from Shade turrets and foot soldiers. The Shade emplacements were a big problem for the Helljumper unit. At least eleven Helljumpers were already dead because of them. The Covenant forces were dug in several quickly made bunkers, not sixty yards from Wilson's troops. Each bunker had at least one Shade in the middle of it. It was going to be a major pain in the ass for Wilson. The Shades were dug in three feet into the ground, surrounded by plates of metal except for their field of fire, and had at least the comparison of a human platoon surrounding them. And there were at least ten.
"Sir how the hell do we get rid of those damn emplacements, their murdering us?" the wounded Williams inquired. He was clutching a bloody bandage to his shoulder.
"Hey if you figure it out, let me know," Wilson replied.
"Get down," Williams coolly said as two Shades hammered their position with plasma. Neither of the two Marines even bothered to return fire knowing that it would give them even more unwanted attention.
"How's the shoulder?"
"Fine that shot of morphine Valdez gave me, is working."
"Good where the hell is Valdez anyways?" Wilson inquired.
"I don't know, I think he might be on the left patching up some guys down there," Williams replied.
Wilson didn't reply as more plasma splashed against his tree. He jumped out from behind it and fired half a clip in the direction of the Shade. He dove for the tree as more Shade fire answered his fire; they came from two different positions. "Where the hell is Russell?" Wilson demanded. "Blue five this is blue one come in over."
"***///*** Blue one this is five go ahead over," Blue five or Corporal Russell leading officer in Wilson's Sniper team, answered.
"Yah five we need you to take out those weapon emplacements, why haven't you?" Wilson inquired.
"Sir we've been pinned down since those Shades arrived and got dug in. I lost six of my snipers and the rest are out of ammo. I only have two rounds left in my current clip and two other clips left," Russell's voice crackled into Wilson's com link.
"Well work my way over to my position, I'll activate a chem light so you can see my position," Wilson pulled out a triangular light and hit it with his fist...nothing happened. Through a night vision scope or through a pair of NODS (acronym for Night Observation Devices) you could see a bright blue light...the chem light.
"Do you see it?"
"Yah Rodger I see it. Okay I'll work my way over, five out,"
Wilson adjusted his lip mike and switched his eye piece from thermal to night vision. Williams eye piece had been hit by micro shrapnel and disabled so he wore a pair of NODS that looked like sun glasses. Five minutes later Russell crawled over to Wilson.
"Russell get to it," Wilson said.
"Yes sir," Russell drew his SRS99C-S2 AM modifiable sniper rifle. Russell had made some adjustments to the weapon. He had put a retractable but stock on and an extended barrel that gave rounds more velocity, and a sound/flash suppressing silencer. He stuck his eye into the 20x magnification Oracle scope. He zoomed in on the closest emplacement. A silent thump sounded as he squeezed the trigger. Through the scope he saw the Grunt manning it, lose a head. Russell quickly switched targets and fired again.
Wilson watched as Russell in quick succession, kill all the emplacements operators. But more were quick to take their fallen comrades place and sprayed the area ahead of them with fire. By that time Russell was out of ammo and lying in the bushes as big balls of blue plasma whined over his head.
Wilson poked his head and rifle out and returned fire. Almost instantly he was greeted with another barrage of plasma. The at least five of the Shades returned fire on Wilson's position. "STAY DOWN!" Wilson screamed as superheated plasma splashed against bushes and trees. Williams made the mistake of sticking his top half of his body as well as his M6D pistol out. Three consecutive plasma bolts that were in a triangle smacked into his chest and sent him flopping to the ground.
"Dammit Williams, you okay?" Wilson shouted. The barrage of plasma fire ceased and Wilson got into a sitting position and leaned over to Williams who was not three feet away behind another tree. Three plasma bolts had hit in a triangle pattern, obviously from a Shade. The first two hit his upper stomach and the third hit the center of his chest. Williams's ballistic armor did not stand a chance against the heavy plasma; it had burnt all the way through. Wilson checked for a pulse...there was one...faint.
As Wilson was doing this, a quick volley of plasma sprayed the area, again. A plasma orb slammed into Russell's helmet. Luckily Russell's helmet was not strapped to his chin and it fell off before the super hot plasma could melt all the way through to his head. Wilson was hit too. A plasma orb smacked into his back, the ballistic armor plating on his back had survived one hit to the back but this one luckily hit his lower back, melting the armor off completely. "Shit!" Wilson hollered as the heat on his back increased and burnt the top layers of his skin. Wilson fell on top of Williams and rolled off onto the ground.
"Holy...ha...ha...wow," Russell laughed, sitting up behind a tree and thinking of his near death experience. "Hey you okay?"
"Sonufabitch shot me again...in the back," Wilson said lying on his stomach, next to Williams.
"How's Williams?" Russell inquired.
"He's not doing...well he's faint. We need to evac him or he's gonna' die. I'll call Valdez to get his ass over here and patch him up. Take his MA5B and provide cover fire...its going to be a long night," Wilson responded blankly.
(Colonel Hood, 2200 hours PM)
"Harold, send out a recon team of five ODSTs. I want them to scout out a half a mile perimeter around the base. And tell a Paratrooper company to go out and get Lt. Wilson's pinned down squad," Hood said, leaning back in his leather command chair.
"Yes...sir," Harold responded and jumped to it. He rubbed his eyes and finished up relaying the orders.
"You sure you don't want to get some sleep?" Hood inquired.
"No...sir, I can manage," Harold said, leaning back in his chair and yawning.
"Okay but if you need to then just go ahead and leave. Its okay Harold I insist you to get some sleep."
"Sir the one who should get some sleep is you," Harold said spinning around in the swivel chair, coming to face Hood.
"An old man like me...heh I got used to staying up a long time ago, don't worry about me."
"Okay sir," Harold spun around to face his console.
(Lieutenant Wells, 101st Paratrooper division, UNSC Army)
Lt. Wells had taken his Paratrooper company a mile into the thick forest. Now half a mile from Lt. Wilson's pinned down Helljumpers. The company had moved along with no resistance. "Lt. Wilson come in...this is Lt. Wells from the 101st...do you read me over?" Wells whispered into his com link.
A hiss of static filled his ear piece and then a faint voice came in laden with static, "rodger...I...read***//***got///*****///##Cov...need help....evac...wounded," Wilson's voice was overrun with static.
"The Covies must be jamming our communications. Move out and keep an eye open," Wells got up from his crouching position, MA5B drawn, and his alert eyes scanning the thick bushes in front of him, through the thermal vision setting on his eye piece.
Through the thermal vision he saw nothing but blue. The night was going to be even colder than the day. Wells glanced at the thermometer on his multi-purpose watch, thirty-six degrees and dropping. Wells was surprised it hadn't started snowing yet. His attention returned to the thermal vision.
(Nowak, Commander Grunt, Field Commander Seraph's company)
The Grunt Nowak was uncomfortable, tired, and pissed. Field Commander Seraph had ordered him and the sixty Grunts under his command to follow a red Elite named 'Masemee and to provide rear security in case the humans they had engaged didn't fall back. Nowak lay in the cold hard ground shivering and covered with a freezing tarp. The tarp could adjust itself to the climate temperature that surrounded it. Seraph had ordered all the rear security troops to take such. "Nos you still awake?"
"Yes I'm still awake. How could I sleep in these damn conditions?" another Grunt named Noswill smirked.
"No kidding, damn Seraph for making us do this," Nowak shifted his lying position so that he could be more comfortable. He lifted the tarp for a brief moment to allow more room to move. While he was doing this his faint heat signature was compromised for only a second.
(Lieutenant Wells)
"Stop get down," Wells whispered into his com link. The 120 paratroopers hit the ground.
Wells looked around through the thermal vision...nothing. He could have sworn he had seen a faint heat signature and it was moving. An animal most likely, but most animals were in hibernation this time of year. Wells pulled out his silencer from his pack. He screwed it into the barrel of his MA5B and took aim. He fired a three round burst at the spot where he had seen the signature.
(Commander Grunt Nowak)
Nowak was in mid-sentence when he heard a zipping sound and a heavy air past by only a hair-breadth away from his head. A sharp pain suddenly stabbed at his shoulder and blood ran freely from where it hit. Nowak screamed and rolled out from under his tarp, rolling into Noswill who jumped to his feet.
(Lieutenant Wells)
Wells saw the unmistakable blip of a Grunt. He gave the order to open fire and Nowak and Noswill were almost instantly chewed up by sprays of 7.62mm rounds and ceased to exist. The return ticket was a barrage of plasma fire that materialized out of the pitch black of night and the thick fog. In the first five seconds of fighting twelve paratroopers hit the ground dead.
"DOWN GET DOWN!" Wells screamed into his com link and hit the dirt as the air above him filled with plasma. He looked ahead and saw dozens of heat signatures. He guessed that there were at least a hundred Covenant.
(Echo base)
The forces that were remaining at Echo base were thrown into a night of multiple firefights. Several platoon sized knots of Grunts, Jackals, and lower ranking Elites attacked the base, but were quickly cut down. The night went on with small fights and no big skirmishes. Colonel Hood was more then sure that the Covenant brass were testing the base for weaknesses but found none. When a Covenant Dropship was seen leaving and shot at, Colonel Hood thought that the Covenant were pulling out. But he was very wrong, in fact the Covenant were pulling in and massing for the coming day, ready to attack the human base.
To Be Continued...
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