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Halo - Urban Warfare by Jonathan Davies
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Halo - Urban Warfare
Date: 18 June 2008, 12:42 pm
Halo: Urban Warfare
It didn't take the brightest ONI spook to realise the mission had gone south. The bodies of 22nd drop platoon lay face down, smoking in the mud. Poor bastards never stood a chance. Like lambs to the slaughter. Corporal Reins and Lance Corporal Marin had witnessed the full event through the scopes of their rifles.
As soon as the wreckage of their HUV's hit the asphalt the 'Hell Jumpers' were history. The lifespan of the soldiers that survived the impact were short-lived as the Covenant soldiers awaiting their arrival fired en-mass. All the training, pain and hardship gone to waste because some half wit Intel officer hadn't pulled all the stops when it came to analysing the battlefield.
'The whole of 22nd, wasted…' Whispered Reins. His eyes were glued to the scopes of his binoculars. His partner remained silent.
'Dammit!' The Corporal punched the floor with a gloved fist. 'If only we got here sooner!'
'There was nothing we could have done for them so don't take it out on yourself, the only ones to blame are the guys upstairs' Martin jerked his thump towards the sky. Through the scope of his S2 sniper rifle Martin could see a trio of Grunts walking through the killing ground, searching for survivors. He would have liked nothing more than to put an armour piercing round through each of their Alien heads but this would serve them no use, and it wouldn't come close to avenging his fallen comrades.
'Try the radio' Asked Martin. Reins remained silent and perfectly still. 'Snap out of it'. Martin swing round his arm and gave Reins a swift tap across the back of his head.
'Oh, yeah, the radio. Stand by'. He reached across to his left shoulder and activated the device.
'This is recon echo, 22nd are down. I repeat, 22nd are down. Does anyone read me?' Reins cursed.
'Keep trying, someone's got to be listening' muttered Martin, his eyes not leaving the scope.
The recon squads original mission was to deliver the Intel data they had gathered to the 22nd battalion leader. The Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (or ODST's) were the main ground assault force designated to eliminate the Covenant presence in this part of the city. This is obviously no longer the case.
'This is recon echo, does anyone read me?' They were answered only with static. 'Cant raise anyone on the radio, looks like we are on our own for the time being'. Martin did not reply, instead he continued to observe the enemy. The Grunts continued to search among the corpses, occasionally tapping them with a foot or firing a lone shot into the downed soldiers. Martin felt anger rise in the base of his mind.
The small aliens reminded the Lance Corporal of biped dogs. Their speech consisted of barks, growls and high-pitched squeaks. This only emphasised the way he saw these creatures. Initially used as cannon fodder Martin had seen this species hurl themselves at their opponents, baying for the blood of the kill. They were about as smart as dogs to, but he was realistic enough not to underestimate them. A squad of Grunts could easily overwhelm a careless Marine. Standing at around four feet high they were not the biggest of the Covenant warrior cast, they had to wear giant re-breather tanks on their back that contained the appropriate atmosphere the Grunts required to breath.
Martin continued to observe the spectacle that lay before him. Lurking in the shadows he could see the Elites. This species was in a totally different league compared to their smaller counterparts. Standing at nearly eight feet tall the Elites were designated field commanders and were an imposing sight to anyone, human or Covenant. Their 'jaw' split down the centre into four mandibles. Each aligned with razor sharp teeth. This gave the image of the Elites wearing a permanent grin on their faces. Their weapons and armour were superior to any that the humans possessed, with the acceptation of the Spartans that is. Each Elite wore a full suit of armour, which supported its own energy shielding. This full body coating could repel small arms fire and projectiles for a certain amount of time but can be worn away through sustained fire, explosions or Martins personal favourite – armour piercing rounds. He had also seen the Elites in action. Lightening fast reflexes and the strength of three conventional marines in peak physical condition meant the Elites were a force to be reckoned with.
Below, the sniper could see three 'rookies' bound in cobalt blue armour and one veteran in maroon red. He was the one running the show. He moved his sights so it aligned with the Aliens skull. That same thought passed through the young marines mind – On the battlefield, the sniper is god. This was indeed true; the tide of any war could be turned with that one, perfect shot. The ending result being fine spray of alien blood and a lot of undisciplined troops.
Martin removed his finger from the trigger and rested it on the guard. As much as he would like to, killing this Elite would only give away their position. With all the information they had obtained on their original mission and here at 22nd's demise Echo could aid any remaining marines or ODST's that operated in that area. Reins still said nothing. Great, all Martin needed was for his spotter to be a brain case.
'What do you think we should now?' asked the sniper. Reins peeled his face away from the scope.
'I don't know anymore' he replied,
'Did you catch all this on tape?' asked Martin. Reins tapped his pocket.
'Secure. Now that our original mission has be scrubbed, what's our next move?'
'Well Corporal, you are my superior so why are you asking me?' Martin cracked a smile.
'Shove it Martin, we are both in this mess'
'Well, I suggest me move our asses off this roof and find some better cover. A dropship or Banshee could fly over any minute and see us, plus we are only a klick away from our mass murdering amigos down there'.
'Good idea, stay low and follow me' Said Reins as he leopard crawled towards the door adjacent to their position. They both made sure to stay as low as possible so not to silhouette themselves against the rapidly darkening skyline.
Reins took point, his battle rifle dancing from one shadow to the next, his eyes focused, looking for any sign of movement. By this time Martin had stowed his sniper rifle across his back and had withdrawn his M6C Magnum. This was because the sniper rifle is clearly not for use in close quarters. Although the Magnum was not as powerful as one of the sniper rifle's high velocity rounds the pistol still packed a mean punch. The magnum was capable of holding 12 armour-piercing rounds and could fire at a considerable rate. This was the standard issue sidearm of any UNSC marine. Reins Battle Rifle was more suited to close/medium range so he always took point when sniping was not required. He suddenly froze. Reins held up a clenched fist, the signal for halt. He bought the scope of his battle rifle up to eye level and slowly advanced a few metres. Once he was reasonably sure there was no major threat the Corporal made his way over to a table. Martin took position by the second story window and unlimbered the sniper rifle to give cover.
'Sorry about that man, I'm getting a bit jumpy, something just doesn't feel right'
'Don't worry about it' said Martin, focusing on the alleyway that ran towards their position. Reins fumbled around in a pocket on his assault vest. He finally found what he was after. He picked up the map and unfolded it, revealing a maze of lines, shapes and coordinates.
'Ok…' he said while biting his lower lip. 'We are here' he jabbed a square on the maps surface. Martin walked over from the window and hovered above.
'We need to get here' he replied, pointing at grid square a considerable length from their current location.
'Alpha base?' questioned Reins. Martin gave a swift nod.
'Given what we know, Bravo and Charlie positions are no longer...' he searched for an appropriate word 'accessible'.
'I heard they got hit by aircraft and armour. No warning whatsoever' A noticeable drop in Reins voice was detected.
'So it looks like Alpha base is where we should head next. We know that Covenant seek & destroy squads patrol these areas' He tapped a series of squares that followed each other in succession. 'So it looks like we need to pass through the older parts of the city to reach Alpha base'. Reins nodded in satisfaction.
'Sounds like a plan' he said.
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