MARS: 4 - Order - TITAN Contractors
25 Mar 2022Aurora Adair-Levine (Radiumio)
NOTE: This story contains themes of violence and strong language.
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DATE: 23rd of March, 3308 [19:03 UGT]
LOCATION: T.O.C. Solaris Q4V-40N, BetelgeuseIDENT: {CENTCOM} "[All callsigns situated around Bay 13, new tasking to follow. Stand by.]"
It was silent for a moment, before a sudden 'hmph' followed from the man next to Locke. Helvet.
"Well, this should be good. Hey. Locke? Locke, you hear me?"
Shooting a glare at him - or rather at his blacked out visor, Locke stayed quiet and looked around the vast corridor leading to Bay 13, his eyes falling upon the set of lifts they were supposed to guard.
"... Did I do something wrong? I was just going to ask if you think they're sending us i-..."
"Shut up, Helvet. After that little ice planet jaunt and run in with that sniper, I don't want to talk to you."
Helvet almost seemed taken aback, adjusting uncomfortably on the spot as he turned to face Locke, scratching his neck while his other hand held his rifle.
"Okay... well... if it's any consolation, at least you didn't die. And, besides, it was like, two weeks ago!"
Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, Locke remained fixated on the lifts, his mind trailing back to the CENTCOM message. If there was any tasks to follow... he figured it was likely to move into that bay. Subconsciously, he prepared himself for a fight, but found that was no longer necessary when the voice came over the radio again.
IDENT: {CENTCOM} "[Scimitar 1 and 2, your new tasking - release the bay 13 lockdown and carry out a sweep of the landing pad. The crew inside have desisted their protest, and order has been restored. No further lockdown is required.]"
IDENT: {CENTCOM} "[Sabre 1-1. Report to the Deck A briefing room immediately, Captain Faust wants to see you. Out.]"
"Ohh, someone's in troubleee..."
"Knock it off, Helvet. Stop acting like a child. Let me go see what the Captain wants. You're dismissed."
"Righto, boss. See you back at the armoury."
Not saying another word, Locke swiftly began to walk away while the lifts to bay 13 opened, crew members stepping out and departing the corridor while the few CSF soldiers standing guard dispersed. He wasn't quite sure what the whole protest thing was about, but quite honestly he couldn't bring himself to care. What he was more focused on was the second cyberattack that occurred on the 21st. Just what was going on around here? Who was doing this?
All his mind could focus on next was meeting with the Captain as he walked down the hallway. His mind raced through various thoughts, all shrugged aside as he reached the next set of lifts - ones that would bring him to Deck A. Time to see what this was all about.
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DATE: 23rd of March, 3308 [19:07 UGT]
LOCATION: T.O.C. Solaris Q4V-40N, Betelgeuse"Sgt. Locke. I understand that you were close to the satellite recovery and Central Command is grateful in that regard, but you must also understand that what you did was unacceptable. Sabre's operation was not authorized and potentially put CSF assets in da-..."
Locke sighed heavily, cutting the Captain off as he glanced around the dimly lit briefing room, the centre of it washed over with an intense blue light as the holographic table idled.
"With all due respect, Captain, without our actions, we would've never made the discovery of the enemy's fleet carrier."
The Captain shot a glare at him, met with an equal fiery gaze as they exchanged a stare. The room was uncomfortably silent for a moment, before the Captain folded his arms, looking down at the holographic table he stood near.
"That may be the case, Sergeant. Like I said, we're grateful in that regard, but it was also reckless endangerment. There have been no further leads from that satellite since we brought it on board, and since it was responsible for the second cyberattack, I'm notifying you that it will be destroyed as a result. The process is already underway, all tangible data has been pu-..."
Locke zoned off. The satellite; destroyed? It was their only lead, no matter how little information they had. Why destroy it? He hardly heard anything else the Captain had to say before he cut him off yet again, much to his annoyance.
"... Destroy?! How can we just destroy it? Why don't we just isolate it or something? It's our only lead, and what about that cyberattack? Didn't it have information injected via the satellite?"
"Yes... however, the investigation has been closed entirely."
"What? Closed? How? Why would they close it?"
"The information within is particularly sensitive to two Commanders. The data is being archived and not looked at unless absolutely necessary."
"But... But this is necessary! How else are we supposed to fight back? Are you seriously fucking telling me we're abandoning the only lead we have?"
"Watch your tone, Sergeant."
Fuming, Locke grit his teeth and clenched his fists, looking away from the Captain as he glanced at the table.
"Then authorize this, sir. Don't destroy the satellite. Let me and my team take it back to the structure where we found it, and sweep the area. Maybe we'll find something."
"Sergeant Loc-..."
"It's our only chance, Captain! We can't just give this enemy an opportunity to run!"
"Take it down a notch, Sergea-..."
"NO!"
Taken aback by his sudden shout, the Captain gave him a look that could kill. Locke felt immediate regret, but it was too late to back down now, he needed to get his point across.
"Just listen to me, damnit! We can't destroy the satellite. How many times has this enemy used stuff like this to provide us with leads? What if we take the initiative? Let me and my team take that satellite back to that surface structure and see what else we can find. Captain, please. I'm asking you to trust me with this. How long are we going to tolerate this enemy fucking with us? It's even taking a toll on the crew, to the point where they don't even trust us anymore! Just let me do my job, sir. When has Sabre ever let you down?"
The room falling into silence once more, the Captain sighed and looked forward at the holographic table, deep in thought as Locke stood there. He was either getting fired on the spot right there and then, or the Captain would listen. Which one it would be was unclear, and Locke figured it was the former. It was a ballsy move, but one he felt he needed to take...
"Fine. Give me a few days to convince CENTCOM."
... because you miss all of the shots you don't take.
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DATE: 25th of March, 3308 [18:50 UGT]
LOCATION: Unknown Coordinates, Col 285 Sector HP-R b20-0 3"Listen up, Sabre!"
The ship lurched as the thrusters roared, accounting for the glide re-entry as the ship pierced through the neon-rich atmosphere of this icy world, starting to transition into normal flight. The structure of the dropbay squeaked and groaned while the Crusader's trajectory adjusted, three silhouettes swaying in their drop harnesses as Locke looked around.
"We're almost there, so let's go through it one last time. If you somehow don't remember, Helvet and I arrived at this planet two weeks ago, and located that satellite. To keep things short, we're returning the satellite today to see if it triggers anything and we're sweeping the structure to see if we can find anything else. The catch? It's just us, Oracle and our vehicle unit, codenamed Onyx. No other support. While we're not expecting combat, stay on your toes. This is a night op and we're heading into unknown territory. Let's do this."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Touching down now! Drop bay opening.]"
Looking down as the bay doors parted and the drop harnesses slid forward, Locke stared down into the dark void as the light from the cargo bay began to light up the ground, the landing gear making an audible thud as it made contact with the icy surface, the hull groaning as the Crusader settled and began to spool down. Shortly after, the drop harnesses disengaged and Sabre dropped to the ground, only falling a few metres before they landed, the frozen terrain crackling underneath their boots as they stood up.
"Oracle, we're out. Disengage the clamps on Onyx's vehicle and we'll proceed to our objective."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Copy, lowering the SRV now.]"
Passing underneath the ship as the rest of the Sabre element spread out and formed a perimeter near the Crusader, Locke looked back at the rear of the ship, watching the custom-fitted magnetic clamps slowly lower the Scorpion and its articulated trailer to the ground, retracting as it placed the vehicle delicately on the surface. Turning back, Locke watched a slim, lightly armoured figure hop out from the drop bay via the door, landing on the surface and walking over with a confident stride. As she approached, she spoke with a soothing, strong Imperial accent, placing her hands on her hips as she stopped in front of him, their opaque visors exchanging looks. He'd smile if it wasn't for the visors.
"Sergeant. Is there anything else you wish to add?"
"Nope. Follow us with that Scorpion, and protect the cargo. I don't want it getting damaged. Keep an eye out on the radar for us and w-..."
"I got it. I know how to do my job."
Walking past him swiftly, Onyx marched towards the Scorpion, sliding open the canopy as she climbed inside, starting to boot up the vehicle while the canopy closed after her. He sighed. He didn't mean to come off like that.
"Right... Sabre, on me. Oracle, hold your position and keep an eye out."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Roger that.]"
Pressing the side of his helmet, the surrounding environment lit up with a beep, the night-vision highlighting the terrain ahead. Just a few hundred metres ahead sat the structure they had discovered and marked last time. Beginning his advance into the darkness as the rest of his team drew their weapons and followed with large spacing, he heard the Scorpion's engine kick in, following them as well. Drawing his AR-50, Locke shouldered it and continued to scan the area ahead visually, his slow and steady breathing echoing in his helmet.
IDENT: {Sabre 1-3} "[Fancy that, Locke. We're back here again.]"
"Shush, Helvet. Let's stay focused."
It was quiet for a few moments as they walked along, the SRV hanging back as its engine droned with a low hum. He was half-expecting for more questions to come over the team radio, but none did as they steadily approached the compound. It made him relieved - he wasn't sure if he could take any more of Helvet's damn attitude.
"Structure's up ahead."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Nothing spotted so far, Sabre.]"
"Onyx, park your vehicle next to the structure and off-load that satellite. We're going to advance and investigate the site."
With the Scorpion pulling off to the side and parking next to the towering structure, Locke continued his advance, the rest of his element following along as they rounded a corner, peering around. There seemed to be no active defences - just like last time, and nobody other than them in sight. A total ghost town.
"Spread out and locate an entrance. There must be one around here somewhere, let's take a look."
With that, Locke slowly began his own advance around the structure, shining his light on the wall as he looked for a way in. The rest of his element disappeared into the shadows, just barely visible in the night-vision as they kept their suit lights off, carefully sneaking around the site. Helvet and Lionel had split off across an expanse of ice and snow, towards a large fuel-tank structure. Adeline followed Locke, but lagged behind as she began to search the wall of the structure for entrances.
By now, Locke had reached the other side of the site, where he had originally located the satellite. That scaffolding structure was still sitting there undisturbed. Looking around, he still couldn't see any obvious entrance.
IDENT: {Sabre 1-2} "[I found something! Some kind of... hatch.]"
"Copy that. Helvet and Lionel, regroup at Specialist Adeline's position."
Turning around swiftly, Locke glanced up at the compass projected on his suit's heads-up display. Quickly matching the icons, he broke into a jog as he followed the compass towards Spc. Adeline's position, turning the corner he came from. Immediately, via the night-vision, he could see her knelt down near the structure, brushing ice and crumbled snow aside to expose a circular shape embedded in the ground. Locke ran over, glancing around as he saw Helvet and Lionel rapidly approaching from across the site. Upon getting closer, he realized that it was, indeed, a hatch, with a small console embedded in the ground next to it.
"Nice find. This'll be our entry point then. Can we use that console?"
Looking over at the console, the specialist reached over and tapped on it, the screen coming to life. From what Locke could see, the other side wasn't pressurized, nor was there any kind of security lock on the hatch. With her pressing it again, the hatch clicked and popped up a bit, the locking mechanism releasing. Locke stood back and raised his rifle, Adeline reaching back quickly to grab her sidearm as she grabbed the top of the hatch, firearm pointed at it.
Reaching the rest of the group, Helvet and Lionel came to a halt nearby, poising their weapons ready at the hatch. With a quiet nod from Locke, Specialist Adeline quickly flipped it open, aiming her sidearm down inside. There seemed to be no lights inside, but a quick sweep with their night-vision confirmed the airlock was empty.
"All clear, sir."
"Alright. Specialist, you're in first. Helvet, you follow. Lionel, you'll stand guard outside and keep Onyx safe."
With several nods from the rest of the team, Specialist Adeline holstered her sidearm and turned around, slipping down into the hatch as she gripped onto an access ladder, climbing down with Helvet in tow. Once they had both entered, Locke holstered his rifle onto his back and began to descend the ladder as well, into the small airlock. Landing on the floor with an echoey thud, he turned around and drew his weapon again, seeing that Helvet and Adeline had already advanced into the airlock chamber, past the blue field containing the atmosphere. Following them, they slowly entered a dark hallway, with only dim emergency lights on.
"Seems like the site doesn't have that much power. Helvet, see if you can find a terminal and if there's a generator we can bring online."
Pausing a bit, Helvet looked around the hallway. Just through the airlock was a junction, but they could either go left, right, or forward. Neither direction had anything obvious about it.
"Okay, so... which way do we go then, Locke?"
Stepping forward to look down the hallways himself, he glanced from left to right, eventually deciding on a direction. They were all the same dark corridors, after all, and they'd likely be searching the whole structure anyway.
"Hm. Let's take the left."
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DATE: 25th of March, 3308 [19:01 UGT]
LOCATION: Unknown Coordinates, Col 285 Sector HP-R b20-0 3"Ugh. Useless..."
Dropping the red maintenance panel to the side with a loud clang, Helvet stepped back from the generator access panel.
"Generator's fucked completely. We'd need to replace some of these components and the batteries dead, so we'd need to dump a lot of our own power into the starter to get it going."
Sighing, Locke glanced around the power generation room they found themselves in. A few minutes earlier, Helvet had located a terminal that had led them to this room, but the software and overall functions of this place were quite outdated - not even having a fusion reactor present in the power room.
"Right, so getting the place up and running again is a no-go. And that server room we saw-..."
"...-won't be accessible as a result, yeah. We could re-route the emergency power but there's no telling how much juice the back-up batteries have. We might only have a few minutes of power."
"Can you check?"
Reaching back to his belt, he grabbed his PDA and flicked it on, looking down at the screen as he tapped on it. Locke wasn't able to see the screen, but he remained standing there, waiting for Helvet's answer.
"... Well, to find out... we'd need to actually get to the batteries first. But, the site's layout is kinda fucked. The emergency batteries are not stored in this room. According to that terminal map, we'll have to go back around where we came in from and take the junction ahead towards the power maintenance room. There, they should store the back-up power array, and we can see if we can squeeze some power out."
"Right. Let's go then."
Turning back around swiftly, Locke raised his rifle and began to exit the power generation room, passing through the doors they had cut open as he headed back into the hallway. Helvet and Adeline followed swiftly, the night-vision being the only thing to guide their way in the dark hallways. Other than the ambient hum of the ventilation, the only thing audible was their footsteps echoing throughout the metal hallway as they walked along the grated floor.
Slowly continuing down the hallway, Locke found himself gripping tighter onto his rifle. The ominous hum of the hallway, the silence and desolation of the structure - everything seemed off again, out of place. What brought them here?
"Did you?"
"Did I wha...ttt?"
Shaking his head slightly, Locke heard his speech begin to slur, his vision tunnelling onto his rifle as his steps became slower and heavier, his breathing laboured as he continued down the hallway. What was happening to him?
"... H-Helvet...?! Adeline?!"
Looking over his shoulder, Locke couldn't see anyone. They were right behind him, for gods sake... where had they gone?
"Guys?!"
"Did you follow orders?"
Who?
"Did you follow orders?"
"Did I?"
"Yes."
Looking forwards again, Locke gripped his rifle tighter, slipping his finger onto the trigger as he laid his eyes upon a figure ahead, staring at him.
"Stop where you are!"
What the fuck is happening to me?
"Don't come any closer! I said stop where you are!"
Flicking his rifle off of safety, Locke raised it to his eye-level as his vision fixated on the figure. He followed orders.
Squeezing the trigger, his AR-50 let off a controlled burst, three ballistic projectiles lighting up the hallway as they slammed into the figure. It let out a non-human scream and crumpled to the floor, sparking. Sparking?
Suddenly, a figure materialized in front of him and a fist collided with Locke's visor, his grip releasing on his rifle as he went stumbling back, losing his footing as he fell to the floor.
"Motherfucker! How could you do this?!"
It was Helvet. Shaking his head, Locke took in a sharp breath, looking up at Helvet who was shaking with anger, his rifle in hands. His view soon followed the source of someone crying and rolling on the floor in pain a few metres behind. Adeline.
"What the f-..."
Quickly raising his ballistic rifle, Helvet pointed it at Locke, standing his ground.
"Don't fucking move, Locke! You just shot Adeline. I'm calling this in."
"S-... What?! I... I didn't fucking shoot her! There was a-... a..."
Looking back, Locke couldn't see a figure on the floor with his night-vision. What just happened?
"Oracle. Oracle, this is Sabre 1-3. Actual is... Sabre Actual is rogue. 1-2 is down. I need an extract now."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[What?!]"
"No-no-no-no, Helvet! Helvet, wait! I swear, I did not fucking pull that trigger! Please, for gods sake, you have to believe me! Why would... why the fuck would I shoot her? What... what the fuck is going on?"
Helvet didn't seem particularly convinced, glancing back at Adeline who was clutching at an abdominal wound that went through her armour, pained cries muffled by her helmet.
"Helvet. Helvet, listen to me carefully. I am not your enemy. I did not shoot her. I had this... weird... weird fucking vision, there was a figure or... something down the hall and I... I shot at it, I don't know why. She needs medical aid! You need to help her."
Sighing, Helvet lowered his rifle after a few seconds, staring at Locke.
"The fuck is going on, man? Just... what the fuck?"
Shaking his head, he quickly holstered his rifle and knelt back down next to Adeline, quickly placing his hands on top of her wound as he reached back, grabbing a first aid kit from his belt. Rolling onto his front, Locke got onto his knees and took in a few shaky breaths, grabbing his rifle and holstering it on his back. He needed to get to the bottom of this.
"O-... Oracle... this is Sergeant Locke of Sabre 1. Disregard 1-3's previous report. I'm fine. Something happened down here and we have wounded. I need you to get airborne and stand by for pick-up... over."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[I hope you have a convincing argument, 1-1. CENTCOM is not going to be happy about this.]"
"I'm... I'm going to head out the site now and regroup with 1-4 and Onyx. Land closer to the site if possible."
"Helvet, can you move her out of the site?"
Helvet looked over his shoulder at Locke. Despite the blacked out visor, Locke knew he was getting a death stare. He couldn't blame him. He always figured they were close.
"Yeah. Yeah, whatever... probably up to the ladder and then I'll need help getting her up."
Nodding, Locke didn't say another word as he got to his feet. The junction was just up ahead, and so he continued, immediately taking the next right into the airlock. Breaking into a jog, he jumped and grabbed onto the ladder, launching himself up it as he climbed out of the hatch, scrambling onto the surface. Lionel was waiting for him there, and he didn't exactly seem impressed either.
"Sir, what just happened?"
There was no sugarcoating the truth. Sighing, Locke stood up fully and looked over at Lionel, shaking his head.
"... Friendly fire. I don't know how it happened."
"Shit..."
Looking around, Locke spotted Onyx's SRV near the fuel-tank structure, parked across the area of ice that seperated the structure and the fuel silo. They walked over, Locke waving to the figure that sat on top of the front left wheel, a carbine in her lap. She hopped off as they continued to approach, prompting a sigh from Locke as he thought of how to explain what happened. Did they really need the satellite anymore? Was this just a waste of time that resulted in one of his team getting hurt? But most importantly... why did he do it?
None of those thoughts could be given much attention before the lights of the structure flickered alive, the surrounding area lit up in a bright white light as a loud alarm echoed throughout the surrounding area. Who turned the structure on?
Spinning back around, Locke stopped and looked back at the structure, placing his hand on the Oppressor locked to his suit pack.
"Helvet! What's going on?! What just happened?!"
IDENT: {Sabre 1-3} "[No clue, I just got Adeline to the ladder. The whole site just lit up like a fucking Christmas tree.]"
"Stay where you are, we'll-..."
Looking up, Locke suddenly caught a flash of light near the corner of the building. A figure was illuminated just barely for a second, before a rocket suddenly ignited, smoke bursting out from behind it as it soared towards them.
"Get the fuck down!"
Diving to the ground, Locke placed his hands over his head and braced, the rocket whistling over him and Lionel. Unfortunately - whoever had fired that rocket had a clear target in mind already; Onyx.
Slamming into the Scorpion's shields right next to Onyx, the SRV lurched as the rocket exploded into a brilliant confetti of sparks and fragmentation as the satellite exploded as well, shrouding the surrounding area in pulverized ice and snow, particles coating Locke and Lionel as they reached back and drew their rifles, laying down on the ground. Grabbing his Oppressor, Locke shouldered it and quickly took aim, resolving the target via his night-vision before he squeezed the trigger, several bolts of plasma erupting from the muzzle.
The figure raised their launcher again, before the plasma suddenly made contact with them. No flash of a shield came, but instead just sparks as the figure collapsed to the ground. At first, Locke couldn't quite make sense of it, but after looking at the silhouette and spotting several more like it charging into the light, he knew what was going on.
"Achilles avatars! Get to cover!"
SUVAS: "Shield Activated."
Looking back, the Scorpion seemed relatively intact but the ground around it was shattered, no sign of Onyx. He didn't have time to think about it before he turned his shields on and jumped to his feet, quickly diving behind a low rock nearby as he peeked around, readying his rifle. Squeezing the trigger, he suppressed the area ahead with a hail of plasma rounds, slowing down the robotic avatars that were emerging into the light. From what he could see, they seemed heavily modified with armour plates, and equipped with a mixture of weaponry. Whoever was behind this was not messing around.
"Oracle! Keep us covered! Do not engage, danger close! Helvet, stay inside that fucking building!"
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Copy that.]"
The ship's drives in the distance roaring, the Crusader soon came into view, sections of the hull opening up as the hardpoints deployed while it waited. While Locke suppressed desperately, Lionel began to pick off targets precisely with his Executioner as he laid prone. The ground cracked and splintered as various rounds impacted around them, their shields taking the occasional hit. There were just too many of them, flooding out of concealed doors in the structure, and by now, there was dozens, continuing their onslaught as they advanced towards Locke and Lionel.
He squeezed the trigger of his Oppressor again, but the gun clicked, the plasma cartridge depleted. Cursing, he ejected it and reached back to grab another one from his belt, slotting it into the rifle with a slap and peering down the scope again. Lionel was doing a better job eliminating the targets than he was, but his suppression slowed the enemy's advance. Now, the avatars seemed to become more cautious as they preserved themselves, taking cover and returning fire smartly.
"They're being fucking remote-controlled! Focus on the ones returning fire!"
While Lionel eliminated targets precisely, Locke continued to lay down suppressive fire, chipping away at the enemy's cover with bolts of plasma. With just the two of them, they were doing considerably well, but not well enough. So many seemed to be emerging from the structure, that it seemed like this was some kind of manufacturing facility. They were burning through ammo fast and not taking down enough in time. Locke ducked behind the rock and shouted out into the radio...
"Oracle!"
... which was proven unnecessary when the Crusader lit up the sky, the ground shattering in front of Locke and Lionel as the area lit up in a bright flash of yellow light, multiple missiles showering the surrounding area in fiery shrapnel and dust, engulfing the hostile avatars. Annihilated by the concussive force of the blast and the fragmentation, the enemy ceased fire, everything going eerily quiet as the dust settled, pieces of rock and ice gently raining down over them. Locke remained behind the rock, breathing steadily as he peered over his cover.
The structure now had a new, prominent dent in the side, scorched by the missile impacts - but the terrain nearby was in much worse shape. Deep craters marked the impact zones of the missiles, crumbled pieces of robotic avatars and weaponry strewn across the area nearby. The fight was over - at least. But, as his mind came down from the rush, his mind shifted to a new thought; Onyx.
"Keep me covered, Lionel. Helvet, get Adeline up the ladder if you can, Oracle will provide overwatch."
Jumping to his feet, Locke quickly ran over to the Scorpion, coming to a skidding halt near the crater by its front wheels. Onyx's carbine laid there, shattered in two, but she was nowhere to be seen - until he looked around. Spotting her thrown behind the fuel tank, he sprinted over, chucking his rifle aside and dropping to his knees as he got near, already reaching for his first aid kit.
"Kira! Kira, it's okay, I'm h-..."
Laying his eyes upon her properly, he abruptly stopped his hand half-way to the first aid kit on his belt and sat there on his knees, in shock. There was no Kira. Just fractured armour that had no chance of protecting her fragile, unmoving body, blood pooling onto the white snow below.
"No... no-no-no... Kira? Kira?!"
Why?
Why did he ask her to join him on this operation? He put her in harms way, purely by accident. And now... now she was just...
"Locke! What the-... oh fuck."
Lionel stopped behind him, staring at the sight before him. Seeing that Locke wasn't acting, he quickly crouched down next to him, shoving his Sergeant aside as he grabbed Kira, reaching for his own first aid kit. Locke continued to sit there, his gaze staring ahead idly while Lionel desperately applied his first aid kit.
"Oracle... Oracle, this is Sabre 1-4, we need CASEVAC now. Onyx is critically injured... I don't know if she's going to make it."
IDENT: {Oracle} "[Copy. And Sabre 1-1?]"
Lionel paused, glancing over at Locke, who just sat there, hands on his lap. What else could he do to have saved her? Maybe if he saw that hostile just seconds earlier, or maybe if he'd told her to remain in the SRV. Maybe if he just-... if he just-...
"... Let's get him out of here as well."
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