Fort Ithaca

The entirety of the Fortress was near complete, pavement had been laid over what used to be dirt, permanent structures built with concrete and steel panels, and tarmac laid out to handle the aircraft.

On the tarmac, a ground crew swarmed about two pieces of equipment that Jefferson mention as being one of many tricks up NATO's sleeve. Two F-35B Aircraft, sleek grey jets, with Marine Corps aviation markings and insignias plastered all over them. They were rolled out of hangers after finally being re-assembled. Their Pilots clambered inside of the open cockpits, preparing to take the aircraft off into the sunset. It was a scramble. Jefferson was changing plans at the very last second, and now everything had to move at the speed of light.

The Ground Crew stood by as the Jet Engines roared to life. The two aircraft lifted vertically into the air in the same fashion as a helicopter would since the engines were designed to do just that, pushing air down to propel the jet up. At around one hundred feet, the engines changed position and pointed backward, propelling the two jets forward into the darkening skies of the Mysterian forest.

Hill 181

Command Tent

Newman brushed past Marines hurrying through the forward Command Post of 181. All of them were too busy to even stop and apologize for

"Jefferson," Newman said when she finally located him, "What the hell is going on?"

"Change of plans. Iscariots are digging in for a siege. If I waited for the Imperials threat to be over, the team would be bones by then," Jefferson explained.

"So, we're just going all-in?"

"Shock and awe. One CH-53 King Stallion will land and pick up our units for exfil, another Sea Stallion will dispatch FECU forces to guard the area while the exfil goes down, Two AH-1Z Vipers will escort them and take care of hostile ground forces…"

"And the dragons?"

"Accounted for," Jefferson said, "Two F-35B Lightning II aircraft, they'll sweep in and get rid of any biological flyers as they're called. Once the bio-flyers are dead, the jets will use their VTOL to guard the position until the Stallions can take off and get out."

Newman had to admit that she was impressed, it was a fast and powerful assault to rescue the troops and deal with hostile threats. Though, one part was still nagging her, "And you aren't worried about any magic shooting our aircraft down?"

"Well, there's a risk, as with everything we do. But our jets will be flying far too high and too fast for me to believe that anyone has a chance to get an accurate hit on them. Our Helicopters are more vulnerable, but with the combined fire, I'm hoping we can distract the Imperials long enough to keep their attention away."

"Sounds like a plan," Newman agreed, "And this is happening when?"

Jefferson looked as if he was about to tell her, but he stopped. Newman looked up to hear screeching, though faint and airy. It was the sound a jet made as it was barreling through the air, "Now," was all Jefferson said, noting the sound of the overhead aircraft…

"Get a doctor! Get a doctor!"

"We have multiple burn victims! We need immediate MedEvac, our troops can no longer stay here!"

"Make way! Make way! Injured coming through!"

Hezekiah heard the voices penetrate his mind as he rattled around in the stretcher. Everything about his body still hurt, though it was more of a grizzly pain that ached all over than the flesh-melting burns that he was getting just a few moments ago. Somehow, he had survived the explosion. His first thought however wasn't of himself, it was Unity.

How many of his squad died? Did anybody die? Were they all alright? He saw Brian and Quinn helping him out. Perhaps that was a good sign as to if everyone else was okay or not?

He couldn't think for too long, as he succumbed yet again to exhaustion…

He woke up later, unsure of how much time had passed since. His body felt sore, though it didn't burn as harshly as it did when he was previously awake. He felt around, finding out that he was lying on a rather hard and uncomfortable mattress. Slowly he opened his eyes, like curtains, they pulled apart to reveal that he was inside of the emergency triage inside of the City Hall. There was another person in the next bed. Hezekiah realized that it was Flint. His sandy blonde hair had grown about an inch from the last time he remembered and was all messy on his head. His face was covered in bandages, though he saw no blood. Flint seemed to be awake, using a glowing device… a phone.

He looked Flint over, his vest and equipment were gone. So were his boots. He was in his regular underclothes, a thin Marine Corps shirt, pants, and socks. Hezekiah looked over himself and realized that all of his equipment was missing too. His helmet, vest, everything was gone. He leaned over onto one side and whispered to Flint, "Psst, yo, Flint!"

Flint looked up from his phone and turned to Hezekiah, "Oh, you're awake. Man, you were out like a light."

"What happened?" Hezekiah asked him.

"What happened?" Flint repeated, "Man we almost died! So I heard… they brought us over here and they got Otaes to fix us up. You looked like shit."

Hezekiah took a look at his hands. Instead of his normal gloves, they had been replaced with bandages. Only now did he feel the presence of bandages all on his face, "That's Brian's work," Flint told him.

"Of course it is," Hezekiah chuckled. He leaned up, feeling relatively okay. His eyes surveyed the room. A few more soldiers and revolutionaries were resting in beds. To the far side of the room was a line of chairs, and none other than Otaes herself was sitting there. Asleep. Hezekiah was going to go thank her when he was stopped by Flint.

"You can't wake her up," Flint told him.

"Why not?"

"Something called overuse, she went too far trying to heal all of us. Passed out…"

"Oh," Hezekiah whispered.

"Yeah, she's gonna be asleep for a while. Even if you could wake her up, she'd be pissed off. So I wouldn't."

Hezekiah relaxed again in the bed, letting himself lean against the wall. His mind began to race as he thought of what to do next, figuring that he felt okay enough to pick at the bandages. He unwrapped a line of bandages on his hands, revealing scabs in the process of healing. The charred-black skin that he once had from the fire had reverted to its normal brown hue. He sighed in relief, the scabs would heal eventually. He again silently thanked Otaes for saving him and his squad, her immense work wouldn't go unnoticed. He thought of what Flint had said of her, "What is she pissed off about?"

Flint swallowed hard and he developed a nervous twitch before talking, "It's her brother. She's angry."

"At me?" Hezekiah panicked internally. He feared that Otaes would've blamed him for what had happened. Thankfully though, a dismissive shaking of the head from Flint calmed him down.

"No, it ain't you. She's angry at herself."

Hezekiah squinted in confusion, "Why?"

"She told me that she could've saved him if she hadn't been knocked unconscious. Like she could've prevented his death, y'know?"

"But she was near death's door when we found her! I mean, it couldn't have been her fault!"

Flint shrugged, "That's what I tried telling her, believe me. But she wasn't having it. Even if none of us blame her, it doesn't change the fact that she blames herself you know. It's like… you know how people who witness a death blame themselves for that, even if it wasn't their fault and they couldn't have done anything to prevent it?"

"Yeah."

"It's like that, or at least, that's what I think. She says that after Minerva, she's gonna go home."

"Temporarily?"

"Nah, for good."

Hezekiah let that sink in for a moment, "Damn," was all he could think to say. To lose somebody as valuable on the battlefield as Otaes, that was hard to accept. But it was her choice. Hezekiah remembered her talking about dreams of being one of the elite "Kitchi" warriors of her tribe. Was she going to abandon that too? It'd be pretty extreme for her to give up her dreams over something that wasn't her fault, but that sounded exactly like something she'd do, "Did you try to talk her out of it?" he asked Flint, whose only response was a whithered shake of the head.

"I mean… the fuck am I supposed to tell her? 'Oops, sorry your brother died! So when can you start fighting again?' Seems kinda assholish."

"Ugh, I know… it's just that it sucks. Otaes was a vital team member. I mean, look at us," Hezekiah pointed to both himself and Flint, "If it wasn't for her, we'd be covered in third-degree burns. Possibly on death's door. She was the one that helped heal Quinn's burn when it got infected. I mean…"

"I know what you're saying. I dunno man, it's up to her. If she wants to go home, I can't blame her. She deserves it. Besides, it probably isn't great to have someone suffering from a loss like that in our squad."

Hezekiah sighed, knowing that Flint was right, "True. I saw her smiling while she was talking to you. I guess the two of you weren't talking about Temetet?"

Flint nodded, "Yeah, unrelated. We were just shooting the shit. I mean, she's chill."

"Kinda like speaking to an old friend?"

"Sorta…"

The conversation between the two died down, Hezekiah let himself relax in the bed for a while longer. His ears listened for the sounds coming from outdoors, and to his surprise, he found it surprisingly quiet, "Where is Sherman? And the rest of Unity for that matter?"

"Up front. Imperial assholes are tryna starve us out."

"Wait?" Hezekiah shot up in his bed, leaning closer to hear more of the details.

"Really. Fuckers have got every single road cut off. The reformist dudes say that they've got people who bring in food and water, but they're getting arrested or killed. And what's worst is that they've taken cover inside of the buildings so we can't engage them…"

Hezekiah looked dumbfounded, "How long have I been out?"

Flint shrugged, "You? 'Bout five hours."

"Shit!" Hezekiah rushed to get out of the bed and gear up, until he was again slowed down by Flint.

"No need to rush, man. Imperials won't be a direct threat for a while. Take it easy," Flint sighed, "Right about now, everyone's just chilling out. There was an airdrop for supplies, so we've got enough to eat and shoot for a while."

Hezekiah didn't let that stop him, though he moved with less urgency, "I'm gonna go out there. Guess I'll see you then?"

"Rock on, man."

Hezekiah found the rest of his clothes and equipment, carefully putting it on as he prepared himself to face the challenges of the present. Everything so far had felt like that. Just one thing to address after the next. Preparing to fight, fighting, and then waiting for the next fight to come on the horizon. It was exhausting, but it wasn't like there was any good alternative option.

He found himself cruising through the hallways of the building, eerily quiet couldn't even begin to describe what it felt like inside. It was as if the entire building had disappeared, leaving behind the hollow remains of the construction itself. Oddly enough, Hezekiah thought it felt… serene. Being alone for once. Able to regather his thoughts, something that he hadn't been able to do for a while. Ideas of winning this battle and going back home flashed through his mind. Finally winning the war and returning for a much-deserved rest.

He turned a corner that brought him to the main lobby of the City Hall, and he was initially taken back by the number of people inside. Revolutionaries and Marines alike were gathered inside. Many were asleep, taking a rest while others stood guard on the shift. Hezekiah noticed how cold it was out in the lobby, and he looked out of the window to see snow falling from the black night sky once more. Moonlight seeped in through the windows, giving the dark room a tinge of blue. Despite the circumstances, it felt peaceful here. A calm before the storm. Many of the awake soldiers were sharing a cup of hot tea, talking to one another with hushed whispers and stifled laughs. Some were wrapped in each others' arms, some might've been family…

"Yo, Hez!"

Hezekiah looked up to see Quinn waving him over to Unity's position. He hurriedly rushed over to him. Brian was sleeping against the wall, Quinn and Lafayette were the only two awake. Hazard wasn't too far off, and a few of Sergeant Wade's Marines were scattered about here and there too.

He gave Quinn a fistbump as he tucked himself in next to them, "Look who's finally awake," Lafayette said with his signature tone of snark fused into his words.

"Seriously, you good, man?" Quinn asked him.

"Yeah, I'm feeling much better… In fact, I feel normal," Hezekiah said looking at his hands.

"Where's Flint?"

"Still in the Triage, but he's fine. What's going on out here?"

Lafayette chortled, "Nothing. Literally! They're playing the waiting game."

"Cathy says that they might be trying to regather their forces before launching an all-out offensive, but even she doubts that they have the manpower to unleash a whole lot," Quinn added, "Only issue is, they saw us conduct the paradrop. So if they know we can get food and supplies in by air, they'll probably abandon the whole 'siege' thing and just go straight for it."

Hezekiah took a peek outside of the window they crouched under. Across the street was a row of bombed-out buildings. Windows broken, doors kicked in, completely uninhabitable. And it looked uninhabited, except for the fact that every so often he could see the red glow of an Ekron stone in the darkness.

"Anybody who steps outside gets fucking vaporized. We've been trying to drop bombs on those targets, but Yankee-Five says that the range is too close to friendly targets."

"What about our drone?" Hezekiah asked, "That's our precision attack right?"

"Negative on that one, Zulu-Eight says that his precision attacks are ineffective. And his bunker busters are too large to use at this range. We're basically stuck here until either they do something, or until Jefferson moves his ass on that exfil."

"Shit…" Hezekiah sank back down. He let his eyes drift back together. Until something came to his ears. The voice of a man singing. His eyes and ears located the sound, it was coming-- of all people-- from Marcus.

"Under no flag, under no country…"

He was with the Revolutionary he had spoken to earlier. Yuri. Trying to get her to sing with him. She had a look of both joy and nervousness. Marcus had an arm over her shoulder, and only then did Hezekiah draw the connection that the two were somehow related. They certainly looked alike. But it couldn't be, Yuri told him that her family was dead…

"Under no King, I fight for thee…"

Marcus' voice was of course far too deep and gruff to sing a song of this nature. Constantly, it sounded as if his voice was cracking while singing. But he didn't seem to care.

"Long are the days, longer are the nights…" After enough prodding from Marcus, Yuri sang, though it was through an almost embarrassed smile. Her voice was the opposite of his. Buttery smooth. She was by no means a great singer, though her voice was still leagues better than the gargling voice of the 40-ish man. They were attracting a lot of attention from the other Revolutionaries. It seemed as if they too knew the lyrics.

"Under no flag, under no country…" Both Yuri and Marcus sang together.

"Stand side-by-side, brothers in the fight," A few of the Revolutionaries helped to sing the next verse,

"The people they fight, turn the night into day.

They sing the tune of,

A bloody revolution

Let the anthem of My people play…"

Piecing the song together from the lines sung, it became obvious to Hezekiah that this was a Revolutionary hymn or anthem. He thought of the lyrics as the revolutionaries joined in to sing. The idea of abandoning country and king to fight for the people. Hezekiah thought that it fit perfectly with the entire cause of the Revolution, to go against the common notion of loyalty to a country, and instead swear loyalty to their brothers and sisters.

"Under no flag, under no country.

I swear to you, I fight for thee.

Long are the days,

Longer are the nights.

Under no flag, under no country."

Most of the Revolutionaries had chipped in the sing either the lyrics or to hum the instrumentals. It had created an almost spiritual effect in the entire room, to see people sing with one another, to create something larger than anything they themselves could've produced on their own. All while facing the woes of battle and certain death ahead when the Marines left. To remain this steadfast with one another was inspiring to say the least.

"The dead fall atop blooming flowers

Blood waters the seed of our fight

Take up your arms and show them the light

We make our stand, to find a place that we call home

Under no flag, under no country."

Hezekiah found himself uttering the last line to himself subconsciously. It was something about that one line, 'Under no flag, under no country.'

It struck him in a way that no verse had. And he loved music. Always had since he was a child. But the idea of fighting not for a country or for a leader, but instead for people and those that call you family, it wormed its way into his soul. It made him ask the question to which he dreaded the answer, "What am I fighting for out here? And why?"

Even some of Unity hummed the verse to themselves. An anthem that transcended borders…

"Under no flag, Under no country

I swear to thee, my people

Long are the days

Longer are the nights

Under no flag, under no country…"

The Revolutionaries burst into applause and cheerful laughter after they finished the final stanza. In the air was a sense of brotherhood, a feeling that had transcended national boundaries. It felt incredible and awe-inspiring. Once again, despite the circumstances. Being blocked in during a siege, with the only thing keeping them alive being airdropped supplies that would last for god-knows how long.

Soon, quiet returned through the building. Spirits had been returned, though the situation had neither improved nor gotten worse. It was only a matter of time before the supplies that had been airdropped overhead were gone through, and if the Imperials knew that the Revolutionaries were getting food in any way, they'd start to close in. But for now, the situation had remained unchanged.

"Unity! Hazard! Asses in gear, now!" The voice of Sherman penetrated the silence. The remnants of the two squads slowly got to their feet, following the Lieutenant through the pitch black of the City Hall.

They arrived back outside in the freezing temperatures and light snowfall of the rear garden. The waters of the river Exeter and the nearby Albya sloshed against the cold and damp shores of the land. Stars penetrated the night sky, with a giant moon hanging overhead, giving off the faintest of lunar light to illuminate the darkness.

Sherman walked to Eden Rose, who stood near a crate full of gear and equipment. He seemed to be the only member of Hazard that had gotten injured during the explosion, as he still wore a few bandages over his shoulder and around his forehead just under the linings of his helmet, "NVG's and headsets on, boys," Said Sherman pointing to the crate. Hezekiah reasoned that it was the one that had been airdropped while he was still unconscious.

"If I may, what's going on?" Lafayette raised his hand after he put on his headset and helmet strapped over it.

"Plan's changed. Jefferson wants us out, immediately," Sherman told them.

"So that's it then? We're just leaving everyone behind us?!" Brian fought back the urge to yell, but even still Hezekiah had to put a cautionary hand on his chest. Hezekiah kept the atmosphere pretty relaxed inside of Unity, for good reason. But who knew what kind of a machine Sherman ran. SAS had impossibly higher standards in both performance and respect than the Marines did, and Hezekiah knew he'd have to keep a muzzle on his most vocal of soldiers if he didn't want to get a severe dress-down from Hazard's commanding officer. Though he seemed unbothered by Brian's outburst, and instead answered his question as if he owed him the respect.

"Private Yale, right?" Sherman asked, and Brian answered with a nod, "Believe me when I say that I don't want to do this. But it's just impossible… even if I wanted to-- which I do!--we wouldn't have it in our capability to take all three-hundred something people with us! It just isn't doable."

"But these revolutionaries have sacrificed so much for us! They've taken us in like brothers, healed us, and fought side by side with us! We have to-"

"Brian! That's enough," Hezekiah warned him. Brian looked into his eyes with a disappointed look.

"It isn't right! Someone has to do something to help these guys out! We can't just leave them!"

Hezekiah sighed and looked at Sherman. The Lieutenant simply gestured for him to address Brian himself, after all, it was Hezekiah's private, "Look. You heard Sherman. We can't. We would if we could, but we cannot. They'll have to find another way out of here."

Brian huffed with frustration, "Sure," he murmured turning on his heels to walk off somewhere else.

"Brian-"

"Leave him be, Staff Sergeant. He'll cool off, for now, I need you and the rest of your squad here," Sherman told him, "Zulu-Nine reports that the Imperials are staging one final offensive. Without assistance, they'll have us all hung before morning."

Quinn held out his hand to ask a question, "If I can, what are we expecting?"

"Everything. I've spoken to Cathy and she's told me that you lot have fought against Stalkers, Dragons, Mages, and soldiers. We're going against all of them, and then some."

"Fuck me."

"They say that they have a general working on the inside named Perceval trying to slow them down, but even still, we can expect an all-out assault within the hour. I've radioed Jefferson, we're getting close-air support and an escort to get the hell out of here. A detachment of FECU forces will drop down while our air tears the Imperials apart. There, they'll secure the area for exfiltration and we'll make a hasty escape," Sherman said, "Surveillance is of course being handled by Zulu-Nine, and we have some equipment from the airdrop to help us out."

Eden dipped into the crate and returned with a stinger in his hands. He looked Lafayette in the eyes and handed it to him. Eden then produced another smaller pistol gun and handed it to Quinn, "That's a tracking dart and a lock-on anti-air missile. You can test it out on that tree over there, fire the dart on it and aim the Stinger to get a lock-on."

Quinn looked at the piece of tech, and then at Sherman with unsure eyes. His eyes again sunk to the dart gun, observing it in his hands with an uncertain cautiousness that a child had with a new toy. Following Sherman's commands, he aimed the dart gun at a tree. Shooting the gas-powered gadget was as simple as pulling the trigger, and the dart was firmly implanted into the tree bark. Lafayette took the liberty to aim the Stinger. His eyes widened in surprise when the machine made the familiar tune of a confirmed lock-on, "It works…"

"Of course it does," Sherman told him, "Obviously, that's for dragons. But for whatever reason, High Command has deemed it necessary that we only have three rounds on the Stinger, and three tracking darts," Sherman sighed pulling the dart out of the wood of the tree. He handed it back to Quinn for safekeeping, "So, every shot matters."

With the new toys stowed away, they were approached by two figures. Their footsteps crunched against the frosted grass and dirt. Hezekiah turned around to see Serj and Cathy side-by-side approaching. Serj looked different from Hezekiah's previous encounter with him. He looked wilder. His glowing eyes looked dimmer. His helmet had been taking off to reveal a mess of hair that looked sloppy and dulled in color, from both a combination of nervous fingers running through it and extreme stress. Plus, stature-wise, he looked like he had shrunk. Hobbling a little bit. A radically different elf from the one that Unity met earlier. It must've been too much happening in one day, it was unlikely that Serj had gotten any sleep or rest since he woke up this morning. If he even got sleep then.

Cathy looked normal. Deadpan, but that expression was normal for her. She must've been completely exhausted by now, being one of two leaders of revolutionary forces in Minerva after all. It was impressive how she managed to remain in character, despite the toll that the day's events had taken on Serj, "Do you have a plan?" Was all she asked Sherman when she approached near.

Sherman nodded, "Good. Serj…?" Cathy motioned to the elf. Serj looked up as if hearing his name for the first time, and cleared his throat before running finger combs through his hair.

"Sorry," Serj started with, "My forces are not at full strength, unfortunately. Of the hundred men that I-I had under my leadership, less than thirty have survived the past few days. But what we do have they are ready, willing, and able to fight."

"I trust they will," Sherman said to him, "But just let us handle this, if everything goes according to our plan, we will have the Imperials driven away from here at least."

"I don't doubt your abilities, but I must ask, are you positive that this will work?" Cathy pressed him further, "We cannot afford any more casualties! If this fails, we die."

"We'll see," was all Sherman said, "I know you don't want to hear that, but in my line of work, nothing is ever certain. All we need is your faith, and for you to stand back and let us do our work."

Cathy sighed, unable to do much more, "That is agreeable."

"Then let's do this. Unity?" Sherman turned to Hezekiah, "You're up to the base. I want you to take your soldiers and line them up by the front. We'll bait the Imperials into ending their siege by firing everything we've got on their position."

Hezekiah tried to predict what Sherman's plan was, "So we'll drag them out into the open?"

"Right, that's the best place for 'em. Either way, when they do decide to strike, they'll strike hard and fast. That's when our fast air mops up the soldiers on the ground-"

"Wait, fast air?" Quinn interrupted, "As in jets? We have that now?"

Sherman gave him a wide smile, "Oh yeah. They'll drop bombs on the targets out in the open and hold positions to provide support and anti-air against dragons and larger targets. Until they come, use the tracking darts to deal with dragons. Got it?"

"Yes sir!" Unity told him.

"Alright, let's get to it!"

[Yankee 5] "Five here, we are firing howitzers on target now. Stand clear…"

[Hazard] "Copy that. All Elements hold your ground! Wait for my signal…"

Hezekiah and the rest of his squad were right behind a hastily built defensive fortification, constructed out of little more than tables, chairs, doors, and fences, strewn together with the little resources that the Revolutionaries had. It reinforced the outer walls of the city hall, but it would be scant effective against an attack powerful enough to tear a hole through a cardboard box. Still, it was better than nothing. To his side were again Revolutionaries. His other side was his team. He eyed Yuri, who was alone again with a musket trained outside of the window. Marcus had vanished somewhere. Yuri's eyes laid on his own, holding their focus for a while before they both peeled off to look at the snowy night outside.

"Hezekiah?" He heard a voice behind him. He turned to see Flint walking up to him.

"Look who's back," Hezekiah told the two as he made way for the duo. Flint was received back among the ranks of Unity with an assault of fistbumps and handclaps, and then he plopped himself right next to his good pal, "You spoke to Otaes?

"Nah. I just passed by Temetet's coffin," Hezekiah's heart sank as he heard that, "Otaes was there. She was just sitting on the floor next to his coffin. They built it out of like… recycled doors or some shit. She was just sitting next to him, with an arm over the box like he was still there."

Hezekiah looked into Flint's eyes, they seemed to have caught a fraction of the sadness that Otaes must've felt, as they stared off into the distance, "She found him just now?"

"Yeah, they moved his body all over the place so we couldn't figure out where he was for a while. But they finally put all the bodies they could in boxes."

"So they buried him?"

"No, not here. She says it's Kiote tradition for a fallen warrior's body to be transported back home for a ceremony. Something that the spirit can't rest until the body is properly handled. I tried to talk to her ever since she woke up, but she refused to leave his side. Not until he's back home, she says."

Hezekiah nodded, "I see."

Flint leaned back against the ramparts, letting his head slump over between his knees, "It could've been any of us…" said a third voice. Hezekiah found the source coming from Brian's mouth as he looked at the floor between his boots and his rifle.

"What?" Hezekiah asked him.

"We could've died out here. We should've died during the crash. But for some reason, we survived. And I don't know why."

"Hey, don't say that! It's a damn miracle that we're still alive!"

Brian looked around, "Does being trapped inside of a City Hall with almost 300 civilians on the brink of being slaughtered sound like a miracle to you?"

"You're purposely trying to look at this in a bad way. We are alive, shut up and be thankful for that!" Hezekiah warned him. Brian somberly nodded, sinking back against the wall before curling into a ball to ward off the cold. Hezekiah knew Brian was still pissed off about the whole plan to evacuate without the civilians, but Hezekiah didn't know he had taken everything this hard. He could still be suffering from the massive fuck-up that was Unity's involvement in detonating a bridge with civilians nearby. But Hezekiah thought that he had gotten over that. But looking at himself, and the others around him, it was safe to say that nobody had gotten close to being "over it". Brian was going through more than a lot for a 19 year old Private.

Hezekiah was pulled out of his thoughts by a faint whistling sound from outdoors that only grew louder, "The artillery," Lafayette identified the sound. An explosion blasted from the city blocks, shaking the occupants of the city hall with waves of terrifyingly powerful force. Everyone kept low. Though the howitzers were precise, a rogue shell could bombard the friendly line. The sentiment to get down low was fueled even further by the massive chunks of debris flying about, as entire sections of buildings were leveled in the shelling. One after another, about a dozen artillery shells slammed into the ground. The soldiers looked up after the last shell hit, and they heard the yelling and cries of the Imperial Army. Whistles blew somewhere in the darkness of the night, the plan to force the Imperials on the offensive worked.

[Jefferson] "Eagle Six to all Elements. Bring the Hammer Down.

Over the cover of darkness, the voice of hundreds permeated through. All around him came the sound of yelling of orders and gunfire. Marine Sergeants, Hezekiah included, began to bark commands to their subordinates to knuckle up and fight off the incoming wave. The Revolutionaries tried magical spells of their own and returned the incoming arrows and fireballs with musket fire. The defenders took position, taking whatever shots they could at the wave of Imperials charging ahead at them, though their bullets were mostly ineffective thanks to the Imperial shields. Both the revolutionaries and the Earthbound soldiers gave it their all to repel the Imperial advance, though the Imperials were as numerous as they were tenacious. Nothing either the Soldiers or the Revolutionaries seemed able to even slow down their advance. Hezekiah looked at the charging wave of Imperial soldiers with the knowledge that it would've been not only difficult but close to impossible to hold this line without the Imperials inflicting major casualties on their side, as the knights charged across the street blindly into gunfire.

"Grenade out!" Cried out one of Sergeant Wade's Marines as he tossed the explosive ball straight out of the windows and into the swarm of knights. The explosion that resulted afterward kicked up enough dirt to make a plume of ash that rose about twenty feet, while at the same time, slaughtering anyone in a similar radius by peppering their bodies with hundreds of tiny fragments. But when one Imperial fell, another took their place. Hezekiah blindly opened fire in the streets below, before crouching down to reload his rifle

[Sherman] "Units be advised! Dragon inbound! Unity, sort the flying fucks out!"

Sherman's voice commanded in Hezekiah's earpiece. He peeked back up over the ramparts and eyed the sky, glowing red scales. Dragons. But this time, they came prepared, "Alright, Laf! Q! You know what to do!"

"Yes sir!" Quinn said as he took out the dart gun and grasped it like it was the only thing saving his life. He took aim, "steady", Hezekiah heard him whisper to himself. Quinn finally let the dart fly after moments of adjustment and steady aim. A flashing red light now embedded itself into the scales of the dragon, confirming that he had hit his target.

"Lafayette!"

"I'm on it!" Lafayette had already taken out the Stinger. The lock-on confirmation tone sounded, and without giving it a second thought, he pressed down on the trigger. The Stinger erupted into flames with the rear end of it going out in a whirlpool of smoke and fire. From the business end, the missile shot out, leaving nothing but a faint smoke trail that vanished in the dark snowy sky. It curved in the air, following the dragon until…

"BOOM!"

The dragon exploded into a ball of flames that illuminated the night sky with violent energy that illuminated the dark with a bright red glow. A second hadn't passed before a second dragon had taken its place. Closer to the City Hall now more than the first. Lafayette and Quinn were both busy reloading their weapons and couldn't hit the dragon in time before it spewed bright orange flames on the City Hall. As it flew overhead, the soldiers took cover, hearing the intense heat burn the wood of the Hall. Wooden Beams cracked and popped, the dragon appeared back in view for a second go-around, "If that dart misses, we're toast!" Lafayette yelled out as he finished loading another rocket into the Stinger.

"I know! I know!" Quinn yelled out. His hands were shaking as he aimed the dart gun at the dragon. The dragons swerved this way and that, flying up and down, increasing and then suddenly decreasing speed. Its rider knew that they had found a way to shoot them down, and was trying their best to shake off whatever aim the Marines had. Quinn let another dart fly, but that one missed entirely, just as a third dragon approached.

"Fuck!" Quinn yelled out as he reached for the third and final dart, though he fumbled it and the dart fell on the ground, disappearing somewhere behind Hezekiah's boot as it rolled out of view.

[Sherman] "We're losing ground Unity! Sort those dragons out, or we're done for!", Sherman barked at the squad. Hezekiah reached down on all fours, searching for the final dart. His eyes landed on the telltale flashing red light and he stretched out his arms to grasp it. Just as a fireball slammed itself into the City Hall, dislodging chunks of the ceiling. They watched in horror as a massive piece of the building collapsed in on itself, crushing anyone unfortunate enough to be right under the gaping hole. The Moon showed itself in the hole, allowing blue lunar light to flow in as well as a flurry of cold air and snow. Hezekiah had scrambled backward as he made the pass to Quinn, "BURN THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS!" Hezekiah shouted at him, clasping the dart right into Q's hands.

Quinn took the dart and reloaded it, and with another shot, he managed to again hit the second dragon. Lafayette followed up with the Stinger, and soon enough, the dragon was nothing more than a faded memory. One dragon remained, and it seemed the Imperials weren't giving up, "I have one more rocket!" Lafayette called attention to the issue, "We need to take that last dragon out! It's tearing us apart!"

"That was my last dart!"

"Shit!"

Another fireball from the dragon rocked the City Hall, though the damage was far lesser than the previous one. And to their horror, two more dragons had appeared in the skies. All out of darts, the Stinger was useless as it could no longer be fired without a lock-on. But everything seemed to freeze when there was an explosion at the front doors of the City Hall.

Quickly the whole building filled with ash. Hezekiah could hardly hear the earpiece screaming at him to retreat. The City Hall had been breached, and now the allies could only fall back into the inner depths of the winding halls and corridors. He didn't even register it, but he had already begun to follow the rest of the allied forces as they fell back into the depths of the building. Gunshots echoed through the building, as did flashes from the guns. The lights blinded Hezekiah. He stumbled over a fallen chunk of debris, right onto his hands. A stampede of soldiers around him, not too much more coordinated than he was. A few stopped in their tracks and turned around to let out gunfire at the Imperials who gave chase. The bullets illuminated the dark chambers of the Hall like a laser show.

Hezekiah stumbled back to a run. He didn't know where his squad was. He didn't even know where he was himself. Following the crowd, they made it into the central lobby of the City hall, where the Allies were putting up their fight to prevent the Imperials from marching in through the breached doors. Hezekiah heard a loud groan come from the stone above and watched in horror as the ceiling crumbled with the allies still fighting underneath. Moonlight filled the void left behind as large pieces of stone caught on fire from the dragons circling overhead. Soon, the entire dome gave way and fragmented into powder. Crushing the people underneath. Hezekiah, and most of the retreating soldiers with him, had yet to enter the room, and so were spared a grave fate such as that. But the fear lingered in Hezekiah's mind that Unity could've been underneath…

The night sky lurked overhead, and a white moon stood superior. A dragon flew into view and circled before looking right into the new hole created. It opened its jaw to reveal that it was charging yet another fireball to raise further hell. The multitude of people around Hezekiah, and he himself, only watched. A few wisened up and decided to run. But they'd be too late…

Until the dragon-- in the blink of an eye- exploded in a ball of light that took the allies on the ground by surprise. Hezekiah fell on his back, eyes still locked on the outside sky. When the smoke cleared, he saw the silhouette of two aircraft flying low overhead. Their jet engines burned right behind creating a fiery orange trail behind them, like comets flying through space. He was stunned as he witnessed it. Many others were too. The Marines had begun cheering and whooping as if they had already won the battle. A spirit of triumphant awe flooded them all, victory now appearing closer than ever with the Jets supporting them.

[Iceman] "Iceman here, dragons are nothing more than a memory. We'll fly around and provide CAS, over."

[Sherman] "Understood, glad to have you with us! Hazard, Marines, get in the fight and crack some bloody skulls!"

"Oorah!" Chanted a choir of Marines not too far away from Hezekiah. Hezekiah heard the whine of Jet engines circling overhead. Occasionally, they'd fire bullets down from above with a ground-shaking "BRRRRRRRRR!!" that made Hezekiah's insides turn to jelly. The Imperials, confused, and having their dragons turned to gory dust in the blink of an eye, began to retreat outside of the City Hall. In a twisted turn of events, the Allies gave chase. Hezekiah gunned down two in the back before he and a squad of Wade's Marines burst outside into the frosty air. Just as they did, one of the F35's streaked overhead, dropping a cluster of bombs onto the occupied apartment blocks. The bombs billowed into clouds of smoke, fire, and devastation. Shaking the ground as they pounded it. The second jet was hovering high up in the air, using its gun to take down Imperials that were in the street. Hezekiah saw something else too…

Two large helicopters, Stallions, were descending on the City Hall's garden. Their lights flashed red and green, and the blades chopped the air to create a nearly deafening whirring noise that signaled the arrival of their rescue.

[Sherman] "Attention all squads! Regroup at the garden, our exfil has arrived!"

Hezekiah ran back into the City Hall, the gunfire hadn't yet ceased and magical spells were still destroying plenty of the walls inside. Not all the Imperials had decided retreat was the best order and the fight was still going strong. Nevertheless, Hezekiah managed to dodge being incinerated multiple times, before finding himself in the Gardens at the rear of the buildings. He eyed the Stallions that had touched down side-by-side. There was some kind of commotion going on right by their entrance. A lone Marine was waving his hand and shouting at the top of his lungs, "Follow us! Follow us! We can help you!" to a crowd of Revolutionaries…

Brian…

Hezekiah's heart sank as the Revolutionaries produced a wave of civilians. Most of the injured, hungry, and sick. Many were children. Brian was picking a fight with the staff onboard the chopper, demanding that the civilians be let in. And what was worse, he was winning. First came a wave of disbelief that washed over Hezekiah. He stood there, only blinking, unable to conceive the idea of what Brian was attempting to do. He took a gingerly step forward. The first of the civilians had managed to get inside. Brian was grabbed by another soldier and shoved to the floor. It was Sherman. He was yelling at Brian now. Hezekiah took another step closer.

The first Stallion took off carrying 55 refugees, the second was almost at capacity. And still, a large block of at least a hundred more remained, plus another fifty of the surviving militia. Hezekiah watched as Sherman yelled at his own corporal, now right up close to the battle, "HEZEKIAH!" Sherman snapped at him. He rose up to his feet, "GET YOUR SOLDIER UNDER CONTROL! HE JUST COST US OUR RIDE BACK TO 181!"

Brian was still on the ground, Hezekiah only stared at him in disbelief…

The Battle raged on, with the soldiers now trapped, waiting for the two Stallions to return, which could've been another half an hour. They arrived after two and a half, at which point the soldiers were tired of fighting and on the brink of losing it all. Brian had been placed in handcuffs, tied somewhere where he couldn't make the situation any worse. But the situation got worse anyway. Jefferson had radioed in, pissed off at Hezekiah for the sudden refugee crisis brewing on the slopes of Hill 181. Though, he gave the order for the soldiers to wait until all of the civilians had been evacuated, meaning they'd have to stick it out all alone for god-knows how long.

By the time the last block of civilians had left aboard another Stallion, the sun was rising over the horizon, with a red sky signaling the approach of dawn. All that was left now were the remnants of the Militia--which had shrunken from 50 survivors to a scant 30-- Unity, Hazard, Otaes, and Temetet's coffin. Running low on manpower stretched them thin, but with the help of the jets scrambling overhead and drone strikes, they managed to hold on to dear life. The last stallion descended, and they all spilled out. Flint helped Otaes carry Temetet's coffin onboard as Unity and Hazard boarded the helicopter. Hezekiah forced Brian inside, carrying the soldier in handcuffs. He had a death grip on his arm, though Brian didn't complain about the pressure Hezekiah had on it. Hezekiah's feelings had turned into rage against Brian. Unable to comprehend how Brian just… ignored him? His own CO's instructions, Brian dismissed to go off and do his own thing. 'The spoiled son of a bitch….' Hezekiah angrily thought as he glared at Brian, who was looking down at the ground as they walked. He looked pale and he was trembling in Hezekiah's clutches. Though he didn't say anything at all…

"Jefferson's gonna be pissed off at you when we get back, I'll tell you that much," an exhausted Sherman told Hezekiah when their ride finally took off and flew to 181. Hezekiah knew that much. Anger at Brian, fear of Jefferson, and disbelief of the whole situation made it so Hezekiah hadn't even registered that they had managed to survive yet again. Though, if Jefferson was as angry as Hezekiah thought he was, death would've been a preferable alternative…