Arabian
Sea, Coast of Mumbai, India
UNSC
Perth
May
9, 2001
1300
Local Time
Frederick sat in her quarters quietly in
reflection of the events leading up to Zyrok’s sacrifice. Her memory was foggy,
but she remembered Zyrok handing his UNSC dog tags and a piece of paper to
Corporal Cookson, her teammate. The next thing she remembered very clearly was
what he told Cookson that changed her.
“Tell Sarah that I loved her till
the very end.” Frederick
mumbled on Zyrok’s words.
Frederick stared at the wall briefly and
frowned. Perhaps it was the last words and actions Zyrok did or maybe it was
her past that made her somewhat attached to him. Everything she had gathered or
heard from the others stated that Zyrok was killed in action, but a little part
of her was telling her that he might still be alive.
“Why am I even doing this?” Frederick asked herself
loudly.
Just as she was thinking a response
to her own question, there was a knock on the door.
“Come on in.” Frederick spoke loudly and snapped back to
reality.
The metal door slid open and
Hariprasad walked in.
“Are you busy Frederick?” Hariprasad asked in a soft voice.
“No, not at all. In fact, I have a
question for you Hariprasad.” Frederick’s
eyes widened.
“What is it?” Hariprasad asked with
a curious face.
“Here, take a seat.” Frederick moved a chair
in front of her.
Hariprasad sat down slowly keeping
his eyes trained on Frederick
unsure of what she was going to ask him.
“So…” Hariprasad’s voice trailed
off.
“Tell me Hariprasad, do you think
Zyrok’s still alive?” Frederick
asked in a serious tone.
“Well, I’m…” Hariprasad began to
speak when suddenly Frederick
raised her finger in front of him.
“I want you to be honest with me.” Frederick interrupted.
“To be honest, I really don’t know.
A lot of evidence is pointing towards the death of Zyrok, but we have not
recovered a body. That being said, I doubt we can find a body if the Secronom
building got blown up.” Hariprasad said with a straight face.
“Hmm…” Frederick rubbed her chin.
“Why do you ask LT?” Hariprasad
asked with a hint of curiosity.
“Well…I’m sure Zyrok would do the
same if it was us who made the sacrifice.” Frederick reasoned.
“Oh, I’m sure. Zyrok seems like the
type of guy.” Hariprasad agreed.
“Indeed.” Frederick replied with a warm smile and
looked away.
“Permission to speak freely ma’am?”
Hariprasad requested.
“Go ahead…” Frederick stared at Hariprasad with an
uncertain look on her face.
“It’s Zyrok isn’t it?” Hariprasad
asked softly.
“What is?” Frederick looked a bit nervous.
“This whole search…this operation.
It’s all him.” Hariprasad stated.
“Well, we are looking for Zyrok,
aren’t we?” Hariprasad stated.
“Exactly my point.” Hariprasad
pointed.
“Your point being?” Frederick looked somewhat annoyed.
“My point being that you came to
find Zyrok, but you didn’t bring Jackal Squadron with you. I find it odd.”
Hariprasad spoke his mind.
“I have my reasons.” Frederick stared at the
ground.
“Let me put the facts out and you
tell me if I’m right. The reason Jackal Squadron is not here is because of
Cookson. If I’m correct, you don’t want Zyrok to get upset or emotional if he
sees Cookson. Assuming we find him in the mess in Afghanistan. Another thing is, I
think you have a thing for Zyrok. I mean, I’m pretty sure Cookson believes Zyrok
is alive.” Hariprasad gave his points.
“You are very smart. You got some
parts right…to an extent.” Frederick
smiled nervously.
“Oh really.” Hariprasad chuckled.
“Keep this between you and me okay?”
Frederick
looked at the door.
“You have my word LT.” Hariprasad
replied seriously.
Frederick stood up and slid the metal door
shut. She looked around nervously with a slight smile on her face. Hariprasad
smiled back warmly as Frederick
took her seat.
“Let me just say it bluntly. I like
Zyrok and I enjoy his presence.” Frederick
said in one breath.
Hariprasad nodded in agreement not
wanting to interrupt.
“I mean, there’s not a lot of good
guys out here or left in this world of zombies.” Frederick explained.
“I know Frederick, but if you look hard enough, it’s
not that hard. Let me tell you a bit about me.” Hariprasad replied.
“Go on.” Frederick brushed her hair nervously.
“Fact is, I’m a good guy. Well,
according to my girlfriend. I would do anything for her such as taking a bullet
for her.” Hariprasad pulled up his shirt to stomach to reveal a scar on his
left hip.
“What happened?” Frederick eyed the scar.
“Long story, but I saved her and I
wouldn’t hesitate to put myself in the line of fire again.” Hariprasad tucked
his shirt.
“Where is she now?” Frederick asked.
“Oh, Heather’s in the US.” Hariprasad
replied swiftly.
“Then you shouldn’t be here
Hariprasad. It’s a dangerous venture.” Frederick
cautioned.
“It’s our job. Only Sears and I are
familiar with the terrains in Afghanistan.
And our hidden assets…” Hariprasad smiled.
“Hold on. I think the ship has
stopped moving.” Frederick
stood up and touched the wall.
“We’re here?” Hariprasad asked.
“Let’s go to the bridge. We’ll talk
about this later. Remember, this is only between us okay?” Frederick stared.
“Yes ma’am.” Hariprasad nodded.
Frederick slid the door open and walked out
with Hariprasad behind her. The pair walked up a set of stairs and out of a
long hallway before reaching the bridge.
“Lieutenant.” Parker greeted with a
salute.
“We’ve stopped.” Frederick looked out of the window and saw
the ship sitting still in the water.
“We are closing in on Karachi, Pakistan.
We’ve sent out a small boat to scout ahead for us to dock.” Parker pointed at a
raft speeding towards a distant land mass.
“Don’t worry Frederick. My marines are good.” Blake
interrupted as he stood up from a computer station.
“It’s not the zombies that I worry
about, it’s the Russians!” Frederick
pointed at a small helicopter flying towards them from the port side.
“Shit! Sound the alarm Parker!”
Blake rushed to the helm.
Parker ran to a lever and pulled it.
A faint alarm was heard inside the ship.
“Attention, this is not a drill! All
hands on deck. Repeat, all hands on deck.” Blake spoke on the speakers.
“Captain, call back the team?”
Stewart hollered.
“Call them back!” Blake ordered.
“Sir.” Stewart acknowledged and
spoke into his headset.
“That’s a Mil Mi-24 chopper!” Frederick looked at the
helicopter as it came into view.
“Missiles incoming!” Parker shouted
as she read a computer screen.
“Get ready for a battle!” Blake
grabbed the helm and turned left.
