"Mom, Mom, why aren't you picking up? Something bad is happening; George's dad says we need to hide in the basement until it's over....Mom I'm sooo scared"...*sobbing*"

"Sorry, the person you are calling right now is unavailable, please call back later or leave a ten second message after the beep......beeeep"

.....Five minutes later.....

"Mom, please, please call back, I don't know what to do. I saw George's Dad go outside with a shotgun and now George won't stop crying."

"Sorry, the person you are calling right now is unavailable, please call back later or leave a ten second message after the beep......beeeep"

.....Five minutes later.....

"Mom, I think something bad has happened to George's dad, he hasn't come back. I think—BANG!!BANG!! BANG!!" phone line goes dead.

~ * ~

Location The Spire, Year 2061

The sun was beginning to sink beneath the pale white clouds, which thinned and began to disappear. The sound of birds singing died away, leaving behind a dull, lifeless silence. A human settlement sprawled below lay in a slight dip in the valley. Tiny lights flickered to life in the small makeshift shacks surrounding a massive tower, similar to a lighthouse at the center of the settlement. The wind blew the scent of human waste to tickle the nostrils of Grul Han, greatest and smartest warrior of the axe caste. Familiar with the human scent, he grinned happily, drool dripping from his lips. Licking his lips, he gripped his newly sharpened war axe, eager for a feast. He hadn't seen such a large group of humans gathered together since the beginning. This could be the fight he and his kin had been searching for their whole lives. His hunger for glory and fresh meat was mirrored in the faces of his brothers and sisters around him, who grinned and slapped each other on the shoulders delighted at their good fortune. Motioning for his warriors to be quiet, the hulking Orc warriors made their way slowly towards the town, careful to make no noise.

~ * ~

Shrouded in the undergrowth, lighting squad an elite unit of hunters and warriors lay hidden, watching the large band of Orcs in heavy black-plated armor march their way across the worn out road towards their main base. After alerting the tower that Orcs were in the vicinity, Qazin, leader of the six-man squad, waved his hand down, ordering his men to crouch down and ready themselves for battle. Sergeant Hicks his second in command a solid fighter with years of battle experience immediately relayed his signal for the men waiting beside him on the opposite side of the road.

The fighters dropped to their knees. M16 rifles were raised to cheeks, and fingers lightly caressed triggers. He raised his hand to signal his men to advance forward, when a scream rang out from the south. Qazin immediately touched his eyes and ears, a sign for his men to wait, watch, and listen. He then cursed his luck. This is just what he needed, some damn roamer blundering into his battle plans.

The Orcs must have heard the scream too, because they also halted their march towards the human encampment. The leader of the Orcs, a huge grey skinned beast with two short tusks protruding from its mouth, called out something in Orcish, which Qazin assumed were orders for the band of Orcs turned away from the encampment and headed in the direction of the scream. With the Orcs no longer moving into the trap, he was now faced with a difficult decision. Order a tactical retreat or chase after the Orcs and hope to catch them by surprise. Both options were equally dangerous. All eyes were on him.

After a moment, he waved his hand in a circular motion, indicating that his men should re-group. Hicks gave him a worried look, before repeating the motion. He waited a few minutes to make sure the coast was clear, before leading his half of the squadron across the road to join Qazin in the nearby Roseberry bush. Hicks crouched down beside him, arm casually resting on his rifle, grey steely eyes constantly shifting back and forth."What's the plan, Chief?"Qazin rubbed his eyes wearily before replying, "The green bastards know the location of our main camp, we don't have much choice, we have to hunt them down or risk compromising security back home."

Hicks grimaced at the grim assessment scratching his earlobe. "It's a large group, Chief. I counted out at least thirty of them; we could lose a few lads in a fair firefight."Qazin smirked, "Who said anything about a fair fight? We're going to use the roamer as bait, and light up the filthy green bastards!" The men grinned, eyes lighting up at the prospect of some action. "Let's roll out, can't let them have too much of a lead." Hicks reluctantly nodded his head agreement and waved for his men to fall into single file.

Lighting squad was soon, ghosting its way forward with Cora at the head of the column, followed by Qazin and the rest of the squad. As a former ranger she had plenty of experience avoiding danger and moving un-detected in the forest. Qazin had often wondered why she had chosen to join his unit. Rangers were to his understanding notorious loners, who preferred the silence. In any case, she was turning out to be an extremely useful asset. She kept the group moving along the edges of the main road, avoiding and circling around obstacles. The men cast nervous glances at the sky as it slowly grew darker with each passing minute. These men had few fears, but even they knew the forest at night was no place for humans. But there was no time to question his decision; they had to deal with the threat quickly, before heading back to base camp.

Cora led the squad for at least two clicks before holding up a closed fist to halt the column. She turned to face Qazin and touched her gun, indicating enemy contact. This was it. He motioned for his men to fan out and get into cover. The experienced warriors spread out to either side of him with smooth easy movements, their guns leveled and ready. He waited a few seconds, before tapping Cora on the shoulder to lead them forward. She nodded and cautiously made her way past a thick bushy thicket towards the open flat plains. The Orcs, growling and swinging their war axes, were huddled up around something on the ground. He had to assume it was his bait. He couldn't waste any more time.

"OPEN FIRE!!"

Bullets whipped out of the forest to pluck and tear into the Orcs, who cried out in anger. Six dropped to the forest floor in the first few seconds of contact, with the rest turning and charging at the squadron. Axes raised, they howled their fury and hunger for blood. A few of them tore off their armor in the heat of the berserker rage that consumed them white froth spilling from their mouths and rivulets of blood dripping down from eyes that gradually became red.

Sweating heavily, Qazin adjusted his aim to fire at the blood enraged berserkers. His men quickly followed suit; berserkers were by far the hardest creatures to take down, so were always targeted at the onset of any engagement. Oblivious to pain, these creatures could wipe out entire units with their incredible strength, speed, and ability to regenerate. Luck was however on their side today and the Orc pack only held three Berserkers, who were dispatched with precision shots to the legs to slow them down and headshots. The remaining Orcs continued to close in rapidly, ignoring the chaos and gunfire. The giant Orc leader, eyes blazing with hunger and fury, pushed its way to front of the pack.

Veterans of many engagements, lighting squad pulled back calmly and broke off into pairs. One squaddie firing his rifle into the blood frenzied Orcs while the other re-loaded his rifle. Orc after Orc dropped to the ground with well-placed rounds that punched into shoulders and faces. The mammoth grey skinned giant growled something in its harsh Orcish tongue and the band of Orcs spread out to either side of the lumbering giant. Their flame colored eyes focusing on their prey, their massive obsidian war axes swinging at their sides. Their plate armored feet pounding into the earth like a drum. The sun above shone one last burst of light to lighten the sky, before sinking below the horizon.