An Unsung Soldier

[QuadRaptor]

This is only the introduction so I will write more soon, but for now....

Inspired by the song "Unknown Soldier" by Breaking Benjamin, and dedicated to a talented Quake Marine named Bank, who's works inspired many, including myself.



The distant sound was now closer than it was a few minutes ago. The group sighed a breath of relief. They had reached the recon point an hour ago and were fortunate not to have encountered the enemy during this time. Soon enough, a helicopter would arrive to take them back to friendly grounds.

They sat, watching the distant woods, their eyes fixed for any sign of movement. In the center of the small perimeter lay a few of the soldiers with minor wounds. The others agreed that they would be the first on the helicopter when it came.

One man in particular held a grenade launcher tight, though he had his hand off of the trigger. He had been a little careless during the mission, and one of the men laying in the middle was injured do to his Trigger happiness. He didn't want to look on the man, so he kept his eyes on the darkness of the trees. He was fortunate to have some other weapons in the backpack he carried in case he ran out of grenades.

Another soldier came up to him. "You alright, Sgt. Kelly?", he asked. The Sarge sighed, "Just want to get out of this hellhole, Andrews." Just a few more minutes...., he thought to himself.

The helicopter sound was much louder now, and finally they saw the blades clear the trees. The group stood in relief as the copter landed. "Alright, you know the drill. Get the wounded on first.", Sgt. Kelly said to them. The others helped the few soldiers on and then got on themselves. As the copter began to fill, one of the pilots called to the last two soldiers that remained, "We only have room for one more." Lt. Andrews looked to Sgt. Kelly, "Go on, Sarge. I'll be alright until the next recon.", he said grimly. Sgt. Kelly sighed, "Alright, Andrews. Help me up."

Sgt. Kelly grabbed one of the handlebars as Lt. Andrews supported his foot with interlocked hands. However, before he was on, he grabbed Andrews' arm and pulled up with all his might, saying, "Get your ass up here!" The others grabbed the Lieutenant and helped him up as Sgt. Kelly stepped down. "Sarge! No, you can't do this!", Andrews yelled as the helicopter's blades began to rotate faster. "Go on, kid! I'll be fine! And for God's sake, call me Bank!", Sarge yelled back.

As the copter began to rise, one of the soldiers aboard called out to Bank, "Sarge! Hope this helps!", as they unloaded their guns and dropped the ammunition to the ground for him. One of the pilots contributed and dropped a medical bag for him. Bank saluted the troops as the helicopter disappeared. He gathered the supplies they left for him and was on his way into the cover of the woods until the headquarters would tell him the new recon coordinates....

http://www.geocities.com/quadraptor/qscollectionb.html

[QuadRaptor]

The bastards that started all this were anything but human. They WERE human once, but now they have been altered....changed into mindless pawns. It started shortly after the Quake Wars began. Some of those soldiers that went into battle began to change in attitude and appearance. Their faces slowly started to melt into hideous forms, and they suddenly turned on their allies and opened fire without mercy. Some claim that these spontaneous deformations were the work of Shub-Niggurath, since the victims resembled her grunt minions. Others rebuked that idea and claimed it was the work of the Stroggs, despite they hadn't had contact with the Earth for years. Still others thought it was some form of bio-warfare from an unknown enemy. It didn't matter who started it - those infected were quickly gathering and assaulting any and all that got in their way. Compared to the grunts in the old days, these were much smarter and deadlier, as their eyesight and accuracy improved drastically as soon as they were infected. That's why Bank's team of Marines were sent in to halt this growing threat before it got too out of hand.

But there was no telling how many had already been infected, and now many of the forces that were at war with each other were slowly creating temporary ceasefires and combining armies to take on this threat. It wasn't the prettiest thing seeing enemies shoulder to shoulder, but for the moment it would have to do.

Bank heard footsteps in the distance. He quickly hid behind a tree and peered into the depths of the woods. It was one of them - most likely a scout, since he did not see any others around. Bank went to one knee and sat his backpack carefully on the ground, unzipping it and taking out one of the weapons he carried - a Danno-class Sniper Rifle (named from the modifications designed by Canadian Sniper himself). He loaded the rifle with a few armor-piercing bullets and got into position, targeting the ugly soldier in the distance. He steadied the rifle carefully, and began to squeeze the trigger when the grunt spotted the tip of his barrel. He just began to lift the assault rifle in his hand when Bank pulled the trigger, and a silenced bullet went through his skull and splattered his head in all directions. The grunt, however, managed to fire his automatic, which shot bullets in a line from the ground to the sky before he fell over and the weapon ceased to fire.

FUCK!, Bank thought, as this would attract other enemies. He had to find cover....and fast!

[Canadian*Sniper]

You forgot to mention that the customized rifle could also be used as an AM/FM radio ^_^ When you're camping in the same spot for days and days, you need music!

[R00k]

;P nice one C*S

[QuadRaptor]

He was fortunate that the area was particularly hilly. He quickly found cover behind a small crest just as three more of those ugly bastards arrived to survey the area. Bank lay on his stomach, the tip of his sniper rifle just barely pointing above the crest. He could see them, but if they looked hard enough he could be seen. He waited for one of them to pass into his scope, and was about to pull the trigger, when....

"What's a Special Ops Marine doing way out here?", a voice from behind whispered, about the time as the cold barrel of a gun pressed behind his head. "We're supposed to be on the same side for now, until these infected fuckers are taken care of. Want to help me out here?", Bank replied, and the gun withdrew. He turned his head to see a lanky man in thick red armor, a wide grin on his face as he took an assault rifle from his back and hid next to Bank. "How many do we have?", the man asked. "Three....", Bank said, and then fired. "Make that two."

The two remaining grunts heard the shot but did not have a visual yet as their comrade fell dead. The red-armored soldier immediately jumped the hill and opened fire, taking the other two out by suprise. When the area was secure, Bank stood and walked into the area as well. The trio lay dead, and the soldier kicked one in the head before turning to Bank and grinning again. "You should move on. This area will be swarming soon.", he said. Bank nodded, "I plan to. Thanks for the help.", he said. "You know, you guys aren't so bad as everyone says.", the soldier said as he walked off into the woods. Bank walked in the opposite direction when he heard something in the comm system within his helmet, "Sgt. Kelly, come in! This is Headquarters!" Bank took cover and spoke into a microphone, "Kelly here. What's the situation?" "Good news and bad news. The bad news is that this area is swarming with infecteds. You will need to proceed with caution. However, we do have a clearing for a helicopter 17 miles north of your position. We will be able to pick you up at 1500 hours. Make sure you're at the recon point by then. The coordinates are....", the operator went on, and Bank jotted them down quickly. "And Sarge, good luck and hope to see you back here in one piece. Maintain radio silence until 1400 hours. Headquarters out."

Bank removed the earpiece and sighed. He wasn't looking forward to the next 17 miles....

[QuadRaptor]

Several hours passed and Bank kept going, either by luck or chance of not running into any other infected soldiers on the way. He was now about 4 miles away from the recon point when he stopped in his tracks. Before him was a plain that had a small impact crater. This must have been one of the battle sites during the Quake Wars, though charred corpses and skeletons littered the area, some still giving off steam. Bank made his way though, his legs already aching from stopping. He went towards the crater and peered in, seeing an odd-looking black stone in the center, with a metallic goo that seemed to seep out of it and collect around where it lay. Bank wanted to inspect it but had to retain himself, for he knew this was the cause of the infections.

He began to turn away when a heavy breeze picked up, and he suddenly could smell something foul in the air. Then immediately Bank began to cough and hack, and soon coughed up blood. He looked at his hand, the little bit of blood in his hand, he knew the horrid reality - he had just been infected, and had no idea how much longer he had before it completely took him!

[QuadRaptor]

"HQ! HQ come in!!", Bank called on the mic. "God dammit, Sarge, maintain radio silence!", the voice on the other end shouted. "HQ, I think I found the source of the infection....and I think I've been infected as well.", Bank said. The other end was silent for a moment, and then said, "What are the coordinates?". Bank gave them and the other line said, "That's close to your recon point. We may still be able to rescue you....". Bank could hear the others at the base talking among themselves, saying, "Are you crazy? He's infected! He'll change soon and kill us all!", and "We can't leave Sarge behind!" Bank sighed and said, "Let's do it, but if I begin to turn then you know what to do. One bullet to my head." He heard one of the others in the base say, "Uhh...sir, we have a problem...."

The radio was cut briefly, and then brought back on, "Sarge, you need to get out of there, NOW! The infecteds heard our conversation and are on their way to your location and in great numbers! The area will be completely swarmed in about three minutes! Head northeast and you'll find a clearing where we will pick you up!" Bank needed not to reply, he already caught sight of some of the infecteds heading his way. He moved quickly, making sure he was going the right way. He was lucky to remain unseen, but he stopped to catch his breath and hid behind a tree, looking back and in horror seeing a multitude of the ugly soldiers already gathering in the area. Bank stole away unseen and ran as fast as he could, the infection starting to weaken his legs. He stumbled a bit but kept going, his mind racing, his whole body sweating immensely. He found the clearing in no time and before he knew it a chopper wizzed overhead, three ropes dropping and several soldiers sliding down the ropes. A stretcher was lowered and they helped Bank on immediately. "Don't worry, Sarge, you're gonna be alr....", Bank could hear them say, but then all was silent. He could see their mouths moving but he couldn't hear a thing. Then just as suddenly, his vision grew dark.

So this is how it ends..., Bank could hear his thoughts echo into the nothingness. What a way to go. So close to getting out of that hellhole and I had to black out at the last second. God, this sucks.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


"S...."
"Sar...."
"Sarge? Can you hear me?"

Bank mumbled something, opening his eyes and quickly shutting them as a bright light blinded him for the moment. "Ooooohhh....fuck!", he moaned to himself. "I'm here, Sarge. It's Andrews.", the voice said to him. Another voice entered the room, a doctor's voice, "You were very lucky, Sargent Kelly. The experimental vaccine to the infection worked perfectly. You'll be feeling better in no time."

"Experimental? You mean it's never been tested before?", Bank questioned, about the time when his eyes adjusted to the light in the room. "We had a hunch that it would work. Just never had a patient until you showed up. It's too bad, though....", the doctor sighed. "I'll tell him. Sarge, one of the armies destroyed the whole area where the infecteds were gathering. Everything there is gone, especially whatever that thing was that was causing all this trouble. It's been completely obliterated.", Andrews said, "And the majority of the infecteds had returned to the area at the time. They're all dead, when they could have been cured."

Bank sighed, "Well, you know what this means. The ceasefire will be lifted and this fucking war will continue. It's funny - a common enemy can make anyone join sides to take them down. It's too bad none of them got it through their head that, regerdless of the colors we wear and all the symbols, we all have something in common...." "What's that, Sarge?", Andrews asked.

Bank closed his eyes, and said, "We're all Quake Marines."