UNSCDF Chapter 32- Obstacle Course

Roosevelt National Forest, Colorado, USA

Signal Mountain

March 26, 2001

0815 Local Time

            “Wake up gentlemen.” Zyrok nudged Casey and Taylor sleeping under a makeshift shelter.

            Casey slowly opened his eyes while Taylor groaned as the sunlight lit his face. Pruett was adding more sticks to the campfire when Zyrok approached him.

            “No need Pruett. We’ll be continuing our trek.” Zyrok patted Pruett on the shoulder.

          “Captain, I think we should look for water.” Nevarez dripped the last few drops from his water bottle into his mouth.

            “I’m low as well.” Schmidt peeked at a half empty water bottle.

            “Alright, we’ll keep our eyes peeled for water.” Zyrok replied.

            “Thanks Captain.” Nevarez replied.

            “All right marines, we’ll move out in five. Pack your gear.” Zyrok ordered.

            Zyrok took down a camouflage tarp and folded it into his backpack. Nevarez took a large stick and extinguished the campfire by covering sand and ash over it. Casey helped Taylor readdress his injury with another bandage. Taylor winced in pain as Casey wrapped a new bandage around his arm. Schmidt inserted bullets into his magazine and slit it into his pistol.

            “All set?” Zyrok looked around.

            “Yeah.” Nevarez and Taylor replied in unison.

            “Let’s go people.” Zyrok waved and looked at his watch.

            “This reminds me of training.” Schmidt reflected as he looked around.

            “What do you mean?” Taylor walked behind Zyrok.

            “Well, I remembered that we had some wilderness survival training.” Schmidt laughed.

            “Be glad you got trained because I didn’t. I got trained to fly.” Pruett eavesdropped.

            “Yeah man, never knew I would have to use it.” Schmidt laughed.

            “Shh.” Zyrok spoke out loud.

            The marines shut their mouths and stopped in their tracks. Zyrok froze and turned his head slowly. In the bushes which were a couple meters in front of them, it was shuffling and shaking gently. Zyrok waved at Casey and Nevarez to flank left while Pruett and Taylor flanked right. Zyrok pulled out his USP and slowly walked forward while Schmidt held his M16 firmly behind him. Nevarez slowly advanced from the left keeping his eye on the bush when suddenly he stepped on a twig and made a loud snap. The rush rattled for a second and a rabbit ran out. Zyrok and Schmidt were shocked for a brief second as the rabbit ran towards them. Zyrok pulled out his bowie knife as the rabbit ran past him. He took a quick aim and threw the knife striking the rabbit’s back.

            “Why’d you kill the rabbit?” Nevarez looked at the dead rabbit.

            “We still need to eat food.” Zyrok replied.

            “Yeah Nevarez, I don’t know about you, but I would like to have dinner.” Casey looked at Nevarez.

            Zyrok crouched over to the dead rabbit and pulled out the knife. He picked up the rabbit by its ears and wrapped it in a bag before placing into his backpack.

            “Dinner’s on me.” Zyrok shouldered his backpack.

            “Great.” Taylor licked his lips.

            “I’m assuming Nevarez don’t want a piece.” Zyrok grinned.

            “No, no. I would like rabbit too.” Nevarez shook his head.

            “Ok…” Zyrok continued to lead his men.

            The marines walked down a hill until they came across a small creek. Zyrok took out his water bottle and waved at his men.           

            “Water!” Nevarez exclaimed as he wiped sweat off his neck.

        “I’ve never been so happy to see water before.” Schmidt splashed his face with cool refreshing water.

            Zyrok turned his head upstream and saw a Bone walking towards them. He pulled out his USP and fired as the zombie ran towards him. Nevarez and Taylor quickly turned towards the sound of gunfire and fired their guns at the Bone. Pruett watched as three more Bones ran out from behind the trees to the left side of the creek.

            “Bones on the left!” Pruett shouted.

          “Run people, run!” Zyrok shouted as he killed the Bone with a well placed shot into the zombie’s eye.

            A mob of zombies suddenly ran out of nowhere and was running upstream towards the marines. Schmidt fired his M16 into the mob as the marines retreated into the forest.

“Run!” Casey fired a round of shotgun as he saw a zombie run up beside Pruett reloading his gun.

            The group of marines ran past thorn bushes and uneven terrain as the mob of zombies chased after them. Schmidt ran and fired hoping to slow down the zombies when suddenly he tripped on a tree root and slammed his shoulder into a tree trunk.

            “Ow!” Schmidt cursed as he clutched his right shoulder with his left arm.

            “Come on. Forget the pain.” Casey helped Schmidt to his feet and picked up his dropped M16.

            “I think I dislocated my shoulder.” Schmidt moaned as he began to run.

            “We’ll fix it later when our lives are not on the line.” Casey fired his shotgun and unleashed a hail of bullets.

            Nevarez and Pruett covered fire while Taylor and Schmidt got to safety above a small hill.

            “We can’t do this forever. We’re going to run out of ammo and get cornered.” Casey concluded.

            “We have to get to high grounds.” Zyrok pointed at a steep rocky valley.

            “Let’s go marines. Double time!” Casey commanded.

            Zyrok looked at the injured Taylor and Schmidt and waved them to move first.

            “Pruett and Nevarez, go assist Taylor and Schmidt up that valley. Casey and I will buy you the time.” Zyrok ordered and looked at Casey.

            “Here you go.” Casey handed Schmidt’s M16 to Zyrok.

            “Thanks.” Zyrok slid his USP into his holster and fired the M16.

          Zyrok fired bursts of two and took down multiple zombies. Casey fired his shotgun twice and quickly inserted more shells into the gun. Zyrok glanced as the marines slowly made their way up the valley struggling to makes their way to the top. Zyrok walked back and continued to shoot at the mob while Casey has switched over to his pistol for better accuracy.

            “We’re clear boss.” Pruett spoke on the RaidCall.

          “Copy, on our way. Cover us from above while we climb.” Zyrok replied back as he turned and began to run towards the valley.

          “You got it Captain.” Pruett answered as he steadied his pistol as Zyrok and Casey ran towards them with a mob of aggressive zombies chasing after them.

            Casey climbed the coarse rocks while Zyrok provided a light cover fire with Schmidt’s M16. Zyrok watched as Casey reached halfway up the steep valley and began to climb. Zyrok felt his foot throb with pain as he stubbed his foot while climbing. Zyrok hopped on to a jagged ledge and smashed his hand on a sharp rock. Zyrok ignored the pain and held his hand firmly as blood dripped from his right palm. He watched as the zombies below him fought each other hungrily for his blood. Zyrok climbed up a small ledge and then shimmied across a platform before making a jump to the top.

            “You’re almost there Captain!” Casey shouted as he waved from the top.

            Zyrok balanced himself on the platform and took a quick observation and jumped up to grab a rock. He winced in pain as the impact stunned his injured hand.  He wiggled himself sideways to grab another rock when the rock he was holding on came loose. Zyrok fell a few feet down and landed on a ledge. Schmidt’s M16 bounced off the ledge and disappeared into the mob of zombies. Zyrok looked at the lost gun in frustration and looked at his hand. There was a deep cut in the palm of his hand.

            “Forget the gun.” Schmidt yelled.

            “You can do it boss.” Pruett shouted.

            Zyrok got up and looked at the wall of rocks. He saw a handhold a few meters up and jumped. Zyrok managed to get a grip on it and pulled himself upwards. He placed his feet on a small protruding rock and took a deep breath. Zyrok looked at his knee and saw blood stains appearing on his left knee.

            “By the time I’m finished, I’ll probably be bleeding to death.” Zyrok thought.

            Zyrok continued to scale towards the top taking short breaks in between. Casey and Nevarez reached their hands over the top and successfully pulled Zyrok to safety. Zyrok panted and lay flat on the ground in exhaustion. The zombies below the valley attempted to climb up, but made no progress.

            “We got to keep moving. They can circle around.” Zyrok got up and wrapped bandages to his hand.

            “You need to rest Zyrok.” Taylor looked at a tired Zyrok.        

            “Rest later until we’re safe for sure.” Zyrok turned his head over the valley.

            “Alright marines, move it!” Casey ordered.

          The marines began to lightly job away form the edge of the valley and headed into a small grass clearing. Zyrok reduced his pace and stopped in his tracks as he felt his head spin.

            “You alright Zyrok?” Pruett approached a dizzy Zyrok.

            “My head…my head is spinning.” Zyrok sat on the ground.      

            “Sir, we need to get away from the open.” Schmidt looked at the open grass fields.

            “Here, have some water.” Nevarez gave Zyrok his water bottle.

            “Thanks.” Zyrok took a sip and closed his eyes.

            “I think you’ve lost a lot of blood.” Casey pointed at Zyrok’s bandages soaked with blood.

            “I think so too…” Zyrok’s voice trailed off as he looked at his hand and fainted.

UNSCDF Chapter 30- The Wilderness

Roosevelt National Forest, Colorado, USA

Signal Mountain

March 25, 2001

2015 Local Time

            Zyrok woke up from the sounds of electric sparks and fire crackling beside him. He turned his head and saw Pruett moaning in pain as he touched his cracked visor. Smoke was pouring into the cockpit as fire spread from the cockpit doors.

            “Zyrok, get out!” Casey shouted from the back of the Pelican.

            “You guys get to safety first! We’ll have to escape from the windows.” Zyrok shouted back as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

            “Alright sir.” Casey replied with a cough.

            “Pruett, let’s get you out of here.” Zyrok shook Pruett.

            “I can’t. It’s stuck.” Pruett frantically pulled his seatbelt as he saw the flames dance towards him.

            “Hold on.” Zyrok pulled out his bowie knife and slashed at the seatbelt.

            With a few slashes, the belt ripped and Pruett pulled away in time as the flames consumed his chair. Zyrok looked at a side window that was cracked and began to hit it with his knife. Pruett reached under the console and pulled out a fire extinguisher.

            “I’ll hold back the fire as long as I can.” Pruett sprayed the nozzle at the flames nearby while Zyrok continued to smash the window.

            After a minute, the window began to chip and the fire became more and more intense. Pruett coughed as he inhaled smoke and began to wobble.

           “Pruett, take my helmet. You’re breathing in too much smoke through that crack in your visor.” Zyrok turned around.

            “You need yours too.” Pruett replied with a cough.

            “Give me your helmet and I’ll give you mine. That’s an order.” Zyrok commanded.

            Pruett took off his helmet and exchanged with Zyrok. Zyrok took the damaged helmet and swung it at the window while covering his face with one arm. Pruett stopped coughing as he felt smokeless air enter his lungs.

            “Let’s go!” Zyrok shouted as he smashed the helmet with all his might at the window and broke it to pieces.

            As the window broke, a surge of fresh air entered the cockpit and added oxygen to the fire.

            “Argh!” Pruett screamed as he caught fire on his chest.

            “Get out now!” Zyrok shouted as he grabbed Pruett to the window.

            Pruett climbed out of the cockpit and ran outside where he was greeted by the other marines. Zyrok dropped the damaged helmet and coughed heavily. As he was climbing out, he saw the flames consume the whole cockpit. Once Zyrok was out, he felt his chest burn from the smoke inhalation and dropped to the ground.

            “Zyrok!” Schmidt called out as he saw Zyrok drop a few meters away from the flaming Pelican.

            Nevarez and Schmidt quickly ran up to Zyrok and pulled him to safety just in time as the Pelican exploded. The explosion shook the ground and ignited the nearby trees.

            “We have to get out of here. Either the fire is going to kill us or zombies nearby.” Casey ordered.

            “Agreed.” Taylor nodded as he clutched his injured arm.

            “An explosion that big…I don’t want to see that tentacle zombie pop up here.” Schmidt shivered at his thought.

            “Nevarez and Schmidt, carry Zyrok while Pruett and I take point.” Casey commanded.

            “Yes sir.” Nevarez and Schmidt replied in unison.

            Nevarez lifted Zyrok to his feet and slung one arm around his back while Schmidt slung the other arm. Taylor looked at the gash on his left arm and applied pressure to it.

            “Here.” Casey reached into his backpack and pulled out a roll of bandages.

            “Thanks.” Taylor thanked as Casey wrapped the bandages around his wound.

            “How are the others?” Pruett looked at Taylor’s wound.

            “A couple of bruises and scratches, but we’ll live.” Casey replied.

            The marines continued walking away from the crash site until they could only see the smoke in the sky. Zyrok muttered something under his breath and coughed.

            “He’s awake.” Nevarez shouted to Casey.

            “Zyrok! Can you hear me?” Casey asked as Nevarez and Schmidt placed Zyrok onto the ground.

            “Water…water.” Zyrok coughed as his lungs burned.

            “Alright.” Casey took out his water bottle and poured it slowly into Zyrok’s mouth.

            “Thanks.” Zyrok felt refreshed.

            “Take it easy boss.” Casey patted Zyrok.

            “Is everyone okay?” Zyrok turned his head to look around.

            “Still standing.” Taylor walked over.

            “Sir, you can have your helmet back.” Pruett walked over beside Zyrok and crouched beside him.

            “Thanks.” Zyrok took his helmet and wore it.

            “No, thank you. You saved me.” Pruett expressed his gratitude.

            “Zyrok, always putting yourself first before others.” Casey exclaimed.

            “That’s what I do.” Zyrok sat upright.

            “Best CO ever.” Pruett clapped.

            “Indeed.” Taylor clapped along.

            “Gee, thanks.” Zyrok felt uncomfortable.

            “I knew you were a good man from the first time we met.” Casey lifted Zyrok to his feet.

            “Let’s head west.” Zyrok looked at his datapad.

            “Anywhere we can get rescued is really all that I care.” Nevarez gave his thoughts.

            “Let’s go then. We should be able to reach an old radar station in a few kilometers.” Zyrok tapped his datapad screen.

            “We can use our communications here.” Schmidt tapped his helmet.

            “Go ahead, we’re in the middle of nowhere. RaidCall only works short range.” Taylor laughed.

            “Hopefully, our distress signal got heard.” Pruett looked at the darkened skies.

            “It will.” Zyrok reassured with optimism.

            “Let’s stay positive people.” Casey smiled.

         “We’ll go for another kilometer trek down and set up camp at the base of the mountain.” Zyrok pointed down the mountain.

            Nevarez sighed as he kicked a rock with boredom and Taylor stopped in his tracks as he examined his bandage.

            “Everything alright?” Zyrok patted Taylor’s back.

            “Yeah boss, I’m fine.” Taylor replied and continued to walk.

            The group of marines slowly made their way down a steep slope holding on to nothing but bushes, vines, and tree roots for support. Next, the men trekked on a rocky terrain full of gravel and coarse rocks before reaching the bottom of the mountain.

            “What a day!” Nevarez threw himself to the ground in exhaustion.

            “Indeed Nevarez.” Schmidt sat on the ground and stretched his legs.

            “We’re not done yet. We’ve still got a camp to build.” Zyrok laughed as Nevarez groaned.

            “Just when I thought the day was finally going well.” Nevarez joked.

          “Casey and Nevarez can go look for firewood. Pruett and Schmidt will establish a perimeter while Taylor and I will set up shelter.” Zyrok directed.

            “You heard the Captain. Let’s move it people!” Casey ordered.

            Zyrok watched as Nevarez and Casey headed off to find firewood while Pruett and Schmidt readied their guns to scout the perimeter.

            “I’ll see if I can find some leafy plants for shelter.” Taylor took off his backpack and dropped it to the ground along with his M21.

            “Okay. I’ll find a soft place for us to rest.” Zyrok looked at the gravel under his feet.

            “Sounds good, just be careful.” Taylor cautioned.

            “You too man. We’ll never know what we’ll find in this forest.” Zyrok smiled as Taylor walked off.

UNSCDF Chapter 28- Desperate Measures

Fort Collins, Colorado, USA

City Park Heights

March 25, 2001

1800 Local Time

            Taylor watched as the grenade hit the Titan’s chest and exploded violently. The explosion consumed the Warthog beside the Titan causing a chain reaction of explosions. The Warthog blew up and flung hot searing shrapnel everywhere.

            “Keep your heads down.” Zyrok shouted as debris flew over his head and smashed into the ceiling.

            The Titan got its legs blown off and was crawling away from the flames. Zyrok got out of cover and began to shoot at the Titan’s head.

            “Aim for the head.” Zyrok hollered.

            Casey and Nevarez got out of their cover and ran out to the streets. The marines concentrated their fire at the injured Titan and unleashed a torrent of bullets. In a matter minutes, the Titan was dead and burnt to crisp. Zyrok and Taylor ran down the stairs and regrouped with Casey.

            “Hoorah.” Nevarez shouted.

            “Mission complete.” Taylor reloaded his M21.

            “Time to head to back. I’ve got to see how Forester’s doing.” Zyrok looked at his watch with a worried face.

            “Call it in, sir?” Casey tapped his helmet.

            “Yeah, call it in. Taylor, get another DNA sample of this Titan. Nevarez, pop green smoke.” Zyrok nodded.

            “Roger.” Casey nodded back.

            Taylor took out his combat knife and walked up to the dead Titan. He stabbed the knife into its skin and cut out a piece of meat. Nevarez reached into his backpack and pulled out a smoke grenade and released the pin. Nevarez looked for a clear area on the street and threw the grenade. The grenade exploded and began to release green smoke into the sky.

            “Foxtrot 515, this is Echo Squad, come in over.” Casey spoke on the RaidCall.

            “Go ahead Echo Squad.” Pruett responded back.

            “Mission is accomplished. Request pickup at green smoke, how copy?” Casey reported.

            “Copy, confirm mission accomplished, over.” Pruett asked for confirmation.

            “That’s correct Pruett. What’s your position?” Casey looked at the skies filled with green smoke.

            “I’ve just entered Fort Calhoun. ETA twenty minutes over.” Pruett answered.

            “Copy, we’ll hold position. Echo out.” Casey acknowledged and ended the communication.

            Zyrok looked at Casey as he walked towards him. Zyrok glanced down the streets and saw a few zombies coming their way.

            “Let’s head indoors while we wait.” Zyrok suggested.

            “Good idea boss. We’re real low on ammo anyway.” Taylor looked at the zombies in the distant.

            Nevarez looked at the smoke beginning to fade and decided to grab another smoke grenade in his backpack.

            “Don’t. We’ll pop another one when there’s five minutes left.” Casey grabbed Nevarez’s hand and stopped him.

            “Okay.” Nevarez nodded and pulled out his hand out of the backpack.

            Zyrok watched as his men get inside a building and closed the main door. He looked inside for a washroom and saw one down a corridor. He opened the door and saw three zombies. One of the zombies had two heads and turned to face Zyrok.

            “Oh damn.” Zyrok pulled out his USP as the two-headed zombie screamed.

            Zyrok shoved a zombie and then fired his USP at the other zombie right at its head. Zyrok pulled out his bowie knife and charged at the two-headed zombie. He gracefully decapitated one head and then snapped the other zombie’s neck with his bare hands. He spun around and threw his knife at the zombie he had shoved over and fired a round into its eye. The head exploded and flung brains all over the wall. Zyrok ran out the washroom to see five zombies burst out of the women’s washroom. Zyrok fired a round and then realized he was out of ammo. He quickly ran into the washroom to retrieve his bowie knife, but was not quick enough to escape as the zombies entered the washroom.

            “Boss?” Casey called out from outside the washroom.

            “I need a hand!” Zyrok combated a zombie as he got corned to a wall.

            Casey kicked the door open and fired two shots of his shotgun into the backs of the zombies and then swung his gun like a club and took out the last zombie.

            “Thanks. Let’s get out of here.” Zyrok said with relief and headed out to the main entrance.

            “Guys…there’s a horde coming our way and it’s been fifteen minutes already. Should I pop smoke?” Nevarez looked out the window.

            “Pop it. We’ll have to hold them off.” Zyrok took a look out the window.

            “Here, have this.” Casey handed Zyrok his Lock 17.

            “Thanks Casey.” Zyrok smiled.

            Nevarez opened the door and threw a smoke grenade in front of the building. Green smoke erupted out of the canister and slowly lifted to the sky. Taylor steadied himself as he aimed his sights at the distant horde arriving.

            “Fire if necessary or else we should conserve with what we have left.” Zyrok ordered.

            “Echo Squad, this is Foxtrot 515. We have visual of your smoke. Hold position, we’re coming in just a few minutes.” Pruett spoke on the RaidCall.

            “Roger, see if you can hurry up Pruett. We’ve got a horde coming up.” Zyrok spoke hastily.

            “Copy, I have Schmidt on the turret to assist.” Pruett spoke calmly.

            “Alright, make it quick. I want a quick extraction.” Zyrok fired his pistol as the zombies were in range.

           Taylor saw the cue and fired his M21. Nevarez fired single shots from his M16 and watched Zyrok look at the skies. Suddenly a shadow cast over them as the Pelican flew on top of them. Zyrok waved at Schmidt manning the turret to shoot at the incoming horde. Schmidt waved back in acknowledgement and began to spray a heavy cover as the Pelican slowly descended.

            “Get on board.”  Zyrok shouted as the Pelican hovered a meter off the ground.

            Nevarez spun around and ran onto the Pelican. Casey patted Taylor to go as he continued to fire his shotgun. Taylor nodded and shouldered his rifle and hopped onto the Pelican. Zyrok waved at Casey to go and then looked at the horde. He saw a variation of special zombies and the new ones they’d encountered. Zyrok turned and ran onto the Pelican while Schmidt continued to fire. Zyrok looked out the Pelican and heard multiple screams within the horde. He wondered if there was going to be another Titan nearby, but reassured himself that it probably was the horde they’d separated before killing the Titan.

            “Let’s go!” Zyrok went to the cockpit and patted Pruett.

            “Alright.” Pruett lifted a lever and the Pelican began to ascend.

            “Guys…” Schmidt called out.

            “What?” Zyrok exited the cockpit to look at Schmidt.

            “What the hell is that?” Schmidt pointed at a massive zombie with multiple tentacles sprint down the street towards them.

            “Holy shit.” Casey got up from his seat as the zombie sprinted closer towards them.

            “Pruett! Get us up and out now!” Zyrok shouted as he froze in terror.

            The Pelican quickly lifted up to three stories high when the zombie slashed its tentacle at the Pelican.

            “Hang on!” Zyrok grabbed a handrail as the Pelican shook from the hit.

            The Pelican continued to lift up while Schmidt fired the turret at the tentacles. The zombie swung again and this time it hit the rear thrusters and the Pelican began to smoke. Pruett managed to get out of the zombie’s reach as it lifted to the rooftops of nearby buildings.

            “Sir, we got a situation.” Schmidt pointed at the rear thrusters leaking fluid.

            “Pruett! Status update!” Zyrok shouted as he entered the cockpit.

            “Our fuel line’s been severed and hull integrity at fifty percent.” Pruett looked at the flashing lights on the console.

            “God damn it. It means we can’t get back, doesn’t it?” Zyrok kicked the cockpit door.

            “That’s correct. I’ll see how long she can hold. We have to steer clear from that tentacle monster.” Pruett looked down at the streets below them.

            The massive tentacle zombie appeared to have lost sight of them as it wondered around the streets. Pruett steered the Pelican towards the outskirts of the city and pushed the thrusters forward. The Pelican spurted out sparks from the rear thrusters and ignited the leaking fuel.

            “It’s going to blow…” Nevarez watched as the rear thrusters went up in flames.

            “I’m going to divert all power to forward and vertical thrusters. It will consume more fuel, but reduce the flames at the rear.” Pruett flipped some switches and watched the computer screen.

            The Pelican groaned as the rear thrusters shut off and the flames began to die down.

            “Land there!” Zyrok pointed at a forest a couple kilometers outside the city.

            “I know sir. There’s not much of a choice either.” Pruett replied with frustration.

            The Pelican tilted forward and began to descend slowly at a sharp angle.

            “Son of a…” Pruett watched as his computer screen went black.

            “What?” Zyrok grabbed a seat beside Pruett.

            “I’ve lost navigations as well as hydraulics. I’m going to have to go manual on this.” Pruett took off his helmet as he turned a knob on the console.

            “What can I do?” Zyrok watched as the ground became closer into their view.

            “Hold this lever and grab it tight. It’s our flaps.” Pruett pointed at a lever.

            “Ok.” Zyrok grabbed the lever.

            “It’s going to give a lot of resistance as you pull it. Never let it go or we’ll increase our fall rate.” Pruett explained.

            “Got it.” Zyrok grasped the lever with both hands as he felt the strain in his hand.

            “I’ll see if I can steer clear of obstacles so we won’t have a big crash.” Pruett focused at the forest in front of them.

            The Pelican flashed an orange light and Pruett glanced at it.

            “Great, we’re losing steering.” Pruett hit the console with his fist.

            “Call it in.” Zyrok nodded as he knew they were going to crash hard.

            “Alright.” Pruett wiped sweat off his forehead.

            “Everyone buckle up and sit tight.” Zyrok hollered to the marines sitting in the rear.

            “Mayday, mayday, this is Foxtrot 515. We are hit and we are going down.” Pruett broadcasted on the RaidCall.

            “One thousand feet.” Zyrok buckled his seatbelt as he watched the altimeter drop rapidly.

        “Mayday, mayday, this is Foxtrot 515. We are going down. Anyone copy?” Pruett broadcasted again.

         “Five hundred.” Zyrok watched as the skies disappeared from their view as the Pelican tilted forward.

            “Mayday, mayday.” Pruett held on to his seat tightly.

            Zyrok felt his muscles cramp as the lever exerted a tremendous amount of force as the Pelican dropped.

         “Three hundred…two hundred…” Zyrok watched as the Pelican hit some trees and pieces of its wings chipped off.

        “Ah!” Pruett covered his face as the nose of the Pelican hit a tree and shattered the cockpit windows.

            “One hundred!” Zyrok watched as the right wing broke off as it smashed a tree trunk.

            Flames erupted on the right side of the Pelican and scorched the nearby trees. The rear thrusters reignited and exploded sending engine parts everywhere.

            “Seventy five…fifty…twenty five…God help us.” Zyrok saw the ground covered with mossy rocks and bushes.

            Just as the Pelican was about to smash into the ground, Zyrok’s life flashed in front of his eyes. He saw himself graduating high school as he walked down the aisle. He saw himself spending quality time with his family before the apocalypse. He saw himself sitting in his room chatting with Sarah, the girl who he truly cared about. He saw himself talking to Mary and enjoying a good time talking about life. Now, all of it was going to end. The highlights of Zyrok’s life flashed so quickly and Zyrok smiled as the visions disappeared and time began to speed up.

            “Thank you Sarah, for everything. I’ll always love you.” Zyrok closed his eyes as he embraced himself for the impact knowing that it may be the last words he will say on this forsaken world and he wanted to have no regrets.

UNSCDF Chapter 26- Hunting the Hunter

Fort Collins, Colorado, USA

UNSC Relief Center

March 25, 2001

1515 Local Time

            Zyrok opened the garage door and walked inside. In the middle of the garage was a troop transport Warthog. Taylor jumped into the driver’s seat and smiled. Zyrok hopped into the passenger’s seat and placed his M16 beside him.

            “I guess we’re at the back.” Casey sighed.

            “Come on Casey, don’t be like that. We’ll switch later.” Taylor winked.

            Nevarez climbed to the back seats and sat next to Casey. Casey looked at the ammo box on the FM Mag and began to count the rounds left.

            “Let’s roll and find the other Titan.” Zyrok pointed at the gates.

           Taylor turned the Warthog on and drove out the garage. A zombie walked out in front of them and Taylor ran it over.

            “Nice!” Nevarez shouted excitedly.

            Taylor continued down the road and exited the Relief Center. He turned left at an intersection and continued to drive down the road until they saw a horde of zombies walking in front of them.

            “Splatter them.” Casey suggested.

            “Don’t. I have a feeling that every time we encounter a horde, the Titan is nearby.” Zyrok studied as the horde moved past them without noticing them on the stationary Warthog.

            “Alright, let’s go around the horde and see if the Titan is nearby.” Casey looked at the vacant streets.

            “You heard him.” Zyrok looked at Taylor.

            Taylor nodded and stepped on the gas pedal gently and slowly moved forward keeping his eyes open for nearby zombies. Zyrok turned his head to face Casey.

            “After this is done, we need to write a report about the new zombies we saw.” Zyrok said to Casey and Nevarez.

            “You mean that two-headed screamer?” Casey laughed.

            “Yeah, that one and another one with tentacles that Taylor and I saw back at the center.” Zyrok nodded.

            “Tentacles? Sounds more like aliens.” Nevarez joked.

            “It must be the mutation. The radiation has really changed the normal zombies. I wonder what else we’ll encounter along the way.” Zyrok wondered.

            “Contact.” Taylor called out and stopped the Warthog.

            Zyrok turned his head to see the Titan in the center of a horde and walking down into an alleyway.

            “We don’t have enough firepower.” Zyrok looked at this M16 and then looked at the horde.

            “Don’t forget, we still have a round for the HK69.” Taylor pulled out the grenade launcher from his backpack.

            “I have an idea.” Casey pitched in.

            “Do tell Casey.” Zyrok looked at the Titan.

            “I remembered that we took out a Titan with a Warthog and grenades back at Fort Calhoun.” Casey smiled.

            “How exactly did you do it?” Zyrok was amused.

           “Well, we had a belt of grenades stuck on the Titan and then rammed the Warthog and blew it up.” Taylor explained.

            “We got the Warthog, but only one grenade left.” Zyrok watched as the horde disappear from their view.

            “We’ll have to improvise with what we have.” Casey patted his FM Mag.

            “We need to flush out the Titan and lure it away from the horde so that we can take it out with ease.” Zyrok began to draft a plan.

            Zyrok looked around at the buildings nearby and looked at the weapons they had available. He took out his datapad and wrote some ideas down.    

            “Alright. Height is our advantage.” Zyrok pointed at an office building down the streets.

            “I understand. We learned that from killing that previous Titan.” Nevarez nodded.

            “We’ll have two men stationed on the high grounds. The other two will drive to lure the Titan to the building. We’ll engage when the Titan approaches the building to divert its attention so that it will attack a stationary target.” Zyrok drew some sketches on his datapad.

            “And where does the killing part come in?” Nevarez spoke with excitement.

            “Calm down, I’m getting there. Once the Titan is baited to attack the building, we’ll drive the Warthog back and ram it. Then we blow it up with the launcher.” Zyrok smiled at his plan.

            “Assuming nothing screws up halfway.” Taylor joked.

            “Pretty much. It’s all about timing and precision. The grenade must not miss its target.” Zyrok spoke seriously.

            “We’ll need someone with good aim.” Casey spoke and eyed Taylor.

            “Looks like Taylor. He’s a rifleman.” Nevarez laughed.

            “I have good aim, but I’m no explosives expert.” Taylor laughed nervously.

            “We don’t have a choice. You are our best shot.” Zyrok spoke and handed Taylor the HK69.

            “So we need a good driver now…” Nevarez looked at the steering wheel.

            “Either Nevarez or I can do it.” Casey offered.

            “Casey drive and Nevarez shoots with the FM Mag.” Zyrok directed.

            “Very well. Same teams, boss?” Casey offered.

            “Yeah, 1-2 for Taylor and I. 2-2 for you.” Zyrok looked at Casey and Nevarez.

            “Sounds like a plan.” Nevarez clapped his hands together.

            “Casey, drive us to that building over there for us to set up.” Zyrok commanded as Taylor exited the driver’s seat and swapped places with Casey.

            “On it sir.” Casey saluted and turned the Warthog around.

            Casey drove down the street and stopped at the tall building. Zyrok and Taylor got off and went inside the building while Casey and Nevarez drove off to hunt for the Titan.

            “Let’s go to the fifth floor.” Zyrok suggested.

            “Alright. Let’s go.” Taylor opened the doors to the stairwell for Zyrok.

            Zyrok and Taylor ran up the stairs and exited the stairwell. Zyrok saw two zombies walking in front of the windows and shoved them straight into the windows. The windows shattered and the zombies fell to their deaths. Taylor looked down to see the zombies splattered on the asphalt.

            “Echo 2-3, this is 1-2. We’re in position.” Zyrok spoke on the RaidCall and looked at the sky.

            “Echo 1-2, we read you. Commencing our run, over.” Casey replied back.

            “Copy 2-2, good luck. See you in a bit, 1-2 out.” Zyrok ended the communication.

            “This is going to be intense.” Taylor held on to the HK69 firmly.

            “It will be. Lock and load.” Zyrok spoke as he heard machine gun fire echoing the streets.        

            “I’m ready.” Taylor took a deep breath.

            Zyrok and Taylor stood next to the window and waited for quite some time. Zyrok began to become impatient as he heard the machine gun fire slowly die down.

            “Echo 2-2, what’s your status over?” Zyrok spoke on the RaidCall.

            “Sir, we’re running out of ammo. The Titan managed to hit the Warthog, but we’re fine. It’s coming, get ready 1-2.” Casey replied in distress.

            “Copy, we’re ready.” Zyrok assured.

            Zyrok looked at Taylor and nodded. Taylor looked out the window and saw the Warthog speeding towards them. Taylor took out his M21 and began to snipe at the Titan behind the Warthog. Zyrok aimed at the Titan and sprayed a light cover. The Warthog passed the building and quickly turned around the corner. The Titan paused for a moment to locate the Warthog, but couldn’t see it. It turned to face its new threat, Zyrok and Taylor.

            “Brace yourselves!” Zyrok crouched as the Titan smashed the wall of the building.

            Taylor fell to the ground as the windows beside him shattered to pieces from the vibration. Taylor grabbed his HK69 and looked outside.

            “Casey, get the Warthog ready to ram.” Taylor spoke on the RaidCall.

            “Solid copy, we’re on our way.” Casey replied.

            Casey and Nevarez watched as the Titan smashed the building violently and then accelerated the Warthog towards the Titan. Nevarez jumped out of his seat followed by Casey as the Warthog crashed into the Titan’s leg.

            “Now!” Zyrok shouted as the Titan wobbled.

            Taylor aimed the HK69 and fired.