NationStates Jolt Archive

Hi everyone, I'd like to first start by introducing myself. I am a two time former player here. I've played as two major nations (over 2 bill pop) and as a few minor nations in role playing here and there. The thing is it, it's been awhile since I've been here and I'd like to take things slow. In the next few weeks, I'm going to create a factbook but I'd like for a person to be able to figure out more about my nation through role playing rather than reading. So I've come up with a scenario I'd like to RP, to get re-accustomed with how things work and writing in general.

The Scenario
For the past six months, my government has been monitoring and island a fair distance off of our coast, in anticipation of capturing it. Intelligence gathered by satellite and UAVs has revealed that the island in uninhabited and hasn't been visited within the last half a year. My government intends on dropping a team of special forces and a resource specialist on the island in order to figure out if the island is worth taking.

I need someone to play the part of 25-50 soldiers who will have also coincidently landed on the island that night and spotted the helicopter which brought the spec ops in. It will be your job to either capture or eliminate them. It will be their job to evade capture, keep the resource specialist safe and get rescued.

Restrictions
- Between 25 and 50 soldiers (I will be using 5 plus resource specialist)
- Regular soldiers, not special forces
- No mortars, AT or SAMs
- No vehicles except whatever transports your soldiers there

Depending on how the RP goes, there are different ways this RP could end or continue... for example, I might call in reinforcements who rescue my men, but, perhaps the reinforcements are shot down and my spec ops now have to rescue them.

I'm looking for one fairly active person please.

Operational Soldiers
AC
Fire Team Leader - Captain Price
M-4 Carbine
M-9 Pistol
3 x Frag Grenades
3 x Smoke Grenades
2 x Flashbangs
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

Grenadier/2IC - Cpl Potter
M-4 Carbine w/ 40mm Grenade Launcher
M-9 Pistol
3 x Frag Grenades
3 x Smoke Grenades
2 x Flashbangs
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

Gunner - Cpl Rock
M-249 SAW
M-9 Pistol
3 x Frag Grenades
3 x Smoke Grenades
2 x Flashbangs
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

Rifleman - Pte Short
M-4 Carbine
M-9 Pistol
3 x Frag Grenades
3 x Smoke Grenades
2 x Flashbangs
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

Reconnaissance/Sniper - Sargent Walker
M-21 w/ Night Scope
MP-5 Submachine Gun
3 x Frag Grenades
3 x Smoke Grenades
2 x Flashbangs
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

Resource Specialist Cathy Wright
M-9 Pistol
1 x Knife/Bayonet
1 x Night Vision Goggles

You don't have to do what I've done, just give me a bit of info about their weapons and stuff.

I'm interested, as I'm looking to transition myself in the NS community slowly as well. I just recently 'revived' my nation, as well as my forum account.

I might be interested. Where exactly is this island?

Osela - How active are you and how good of a war RPer would you rate yourself?

Zinaire - It is located off of the African coast, however, instead of Africa, my own continent is located there.

I am interested in joining. Will there be anyone on this island that has hidden from satellites?

Zinaire - It is located off of the African coast, however, instead of Africa, my own continent is located there.

Hmm, I'm in the Caribbean, so I'm not sure why my troops would be all the way over there. I'm sure I could think of something though.

I've had some experience in a war RP two years ago (yes, two years). Looking back then, I was a semi-decent RPer (my descriptions were a bit lacking, however). I've improved my writing skills since then though, and I'm eager to test them out.

I'm active usually everyday, but sometimes my schedule gets a bit restrictive as I do have real life to deal with as well. It depends, really. I'm active at 4:30-6pm Pacific and after that, 8:30pm-12am Pacific on weekdays. Might vary a bit, however.

What times are you active at? I might be able to change my schedule around a bit if I know what time you're usually on.

On weekends I'm usually more active, obviously.

Oslea, it sounds like we both need the practice as it has been awhile for us both. I am active at rather random times through the week, but usually not on weekends. I won't worry about changing your schedule, RL is more important. I'll have an IC post up shortly.

As for the rest, thanks for trying out but I've found an opponent.

Alright, just waiting on your IC post.

Since it's already late here I can RP till probably about 1:30am (it's 12:46am currently).

And, I've said this a ton of times but I'm in the Pacific Time Zone (California, Vancouver B.C., Washington)

I'l be using LCACs based in a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship to get on the island. I'm not going to use helicopters from there to assault the island or anything, unless the conflict manages to escalate.

My reasoning is that my country is planning to claim the island and the waters around it in search of oil and minerals. Since my country believe it's unclaimed and (judging by your description) is just out of your borders, the top brass decides it wouldn't hurt to claim the island by using military force.

The cool night air was split by the dull blade of a single UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. The soft thud of the rotor splitting the air was drowned out by the sounds of heavy rain, thunder and the rough seas below.

Inside the cabin of the helicopter sat five of the best soldiers from Fordyk, members of the Air Calvary Special Forces Unit. They weren't battle hardened, only two of them had seen any kind of fighting at all but despite this, they were very well trained.

The five men were in good spirits. In most cases, they would remain much more serious, however, they were going to invade an uninhabited island, a mission they thought they were above. After all, who sends the best soldiers to do a regular grunt's mission?

Each man sat, exchanging stories, puffing a cigarette and checking his own weapons and kit. Each man carried enough supplies for 12 hours, they weren't expected to be there any longer.

A sixth person also sat on board but rather than partaking in the ''festivities'', she chose to remain quiet, opting to read one of her favorite books instead. She had been hired as part of a team of resource anaylsts working for the government to determain if the land was viable for ''development''. It wa up to her to collect soil samples, rock samples and identify the types of plants and trees on the island.

The intercom in the cabin crackled to life.

''Team we are just passing over the beach now, we have about two minutes till we reach the LZ.''

The cabin became quiet as the men now focused on the mission ahead. Several men continued checking over their equipment, while others just thought about the mission ahead. For the first time, Cathy felt afraid. It seemed strange watching the soldiers prepare as if they were about to go to battle. She tucked her book into her rucksack and nearly jumped off her seat as she felt a tap on her shoulder. It was Captain Price.

''Have you checked over your weapon and ammo?''

She hadn't even thought of it, despite watching the others doing it the whole flight.

''No sir.''

''Pass it here.''

She handed him her issued M-9 pistol and several clips of ammunition. He checked to ensure the clips were full and that the weapon was in working order. Satisfied, he handed it back to her. As she watched him take his seat, she could feel the helicopter slowing, then decending. Price through open one of the chopper doors just as it touched down in the meadow. Immediatly, the soldiers exited the chopper, one giving Cathy a slight push urging her along with them.

The helicopter returned to the night sky and the men formed a cricle, crouching down around her. It wasn't for her just for her protection, this all around defense would allow them the chance to adjust to the darkness and to being back on the ground.

Price surveyed the area. To his north sat a grassy hill, covered in the odd tree, many of which appeared dead. To his east, more of the grassy field. To his south, many large rocks, the beach and then the ocean and to his west, the dense jungle.

He spoke through his headset, ordering his men to don their night vison goggles, he then consulted his GPS locater to ensure he had been put in the right spot.

The Captain was looking outside his window in his quarters at the night sky. In the distance, he could see the small little island that the Government back in Oslea wanted.

He couldn't really see why; it didn't seem like it held any tactical advantage at all. Though the bureaucrats at home always had something else in mind, and with the oil prices recently going up, the Government must be trying to secure another supply for themselves.

An aide knocked on his door.

"You may come in."

"Sir, the order for Operation Wisp has been given out."

"Very well. Notify Staff Sergeant Jacobs."

The aide complied, and went to the LCAC docking area, where a detachment of Marines were awaiting orders.

"Sir, this is for you."

The aide handed him a slip of paper with an order from the Secretary of Defence.

"Alright, it's go time."

Fifty marines boarded the LCAC, and after doing a quick check to make sure everything was in order, the large hovercraft began moving towards the shore of the little island. SSgt. Jacobs shouted over the loud whirr of the engines. The cool night air hit the faces of the young-faced Marines. This is the first mission for many of them; they were fresh out of training camp with the exceptions of the Sergeants who had experience from the Djupesland Independence War.

"Marines, the President wants us to secure and occupy a small island. We believe there are no inhabitants, but the top brass ain't sure and want us to go in first to make sure everything's clear. Once we've secured the island, they'll send over some analysts."

"Everyone is split into five times of ten. You know which team you're in."

"Team Alpha will be lead by me. Team Bravo, Sgt. Andrews. Team Charlie, Sgt. Spade. Delta, Sgt. Wyke. Echo, Sgt. Colin."

The crew shouted over to Jacobs. "Couple of minutes!"

"Alright Marines, lock and load!"

The LCAC landed on a sandy beach with dense jungle in the background. The Marines fanned out and secured the insertion point.

SSgt Jacobs picked out a little speck of black metal out of the dark night sky, and his imagination started playing with him.

"Helicopter?.. No, can't be."

He radioed base, trying to see if the military had dropped in a SEAL team east of his position.

"Command, are there any friendlies in the area?"

<Negative. No friendlies. You're alone.>

"Shit." He muttered under his breath. "Requesting AH-1 support, there may be others in the area. Not sure if hostile, but I may have spotted a non-Oslean helicopter."

<Request denied, Staff Sergeant. Resume with the mission.>

He sighed. He quickly got his mind back on the objective.

The Marines were checking their weapons and hitting their magazines to make sure that they were functional. They all turned towards SSgt. Jacob's direction when he spoke up.

"Alright. All groups, fan out, and report if you see anything suspicious."

The young Marines weren't expecting much; they had the idea that it was some inhabited island in the middle of nowhere. If there were inhabitants, they were expecting pirates or tribesmen holding sticks. The Sergeants were much more suspicious, moreso than even Command. They were convinced they wouldn't run into any resistance, so they sent fresh-raced recruits to help them get accustomed to doing missions, and didn't even assign any sniper or AT/AA teams. Each 10-man squad was just armed with M4s (some with M203s), an M249 SAW, and M240B.

"Stay frosty..." muttered Sergeant Wyke.

Price shivered, perhaps from the cold or perhaps from intuition. Something didn't feel right. At first he thought it was because they had been dropped in the wrong spot but a quick check of the GPS showed that this wasn't the case. He stood up and spoke through his headset.

''Arrowhead formation, first objective is the hill to our north.''

The group obeyed, forming an arrowhead with a meter spacing between them. They headed towards the hill, keeping a watchful eye for an sign of movement. As they reached the hill, Price flashed them a hand signal and they reformed into a line, slowly and carefully trekking up the muddy and slippery hill. Upon reaching the top, the soldiers found firing positions overlooking the rest of the island while Cathy got to work.

((OOC:

"No special forces"

Damn it. I was wanting to turn this into a macabre, realistic version of Predator. Oh well.

EDIT: Captain Price!?! Surely you know that's the most famous captain on NS, thanks to Call of Duty?))

Alpha Team trudged through the dense jungle as the other four teams combed the west side of the island for any inhabitants. The mood among the soldiers was rather lax; a young Private lit up a cigarette, with his M4 held by his spare left hand.

"We gon' search through this whole island, Sir?" He asked.

"Orders are orders. You've got that part right."

It felt more like a march instead of a mission, with most of the recruits casually looking around their surroundings and chatting amongst themselves, though rather quietly.

Then, the monotony was broken by a soldier's obnoxious laugh.

"Bradbury! Shut the hell up!" Jacobs ordered, clearly frustrated.

"Hah, hahah... I'm sorry Sir, Daniels just told me this joke about..." He was abruptly cut off.

The lumbering Sergeant towered over the recruit and spoke straight to his face. "This is a mission, not a freakin' stand up comedy show. Bradbury, you keep your mouth shut tight, and you too, Daniels, or I'm gonna come and shove fucking smoke grenades in there. Y'understand?"

Both soldiers nodded.

"Man, he seems pissed."

After that, all of the Alpha Team soldiers kept their mouth closed, fearing the wrath of their Staff Sargeant.

Cathy finished collecting soil samples and pulled out a small black book from her pocket. She began documenting trees that she could see and taking pictures of them.

Price shivered again and pulled the GPS locater from a pocket on his tactical vest. Their next location of interest was to the west, deep in the dense jungle. He was about to turn and see what was taking Cathy so long when he heard something. It sounded like a man's laughter, coming from the jungle.

He turned and watched the area through his night vision goggles. Sure enough, about five minutes later, he spotted movement. He could see at least ten men, dressed in camouflage uniforms. They weren't civilians and they weren't supposed to be there. He spoke through his headset in a whisper, despite the fact they weren't close enough to here him talk.

''We've got contacts on my 12' oclock, they appear to be tangos.''

Everything went quiet for a moment, then the sniper, Sargent Walker replied.

''Understood, I'm coming up to get a closer look.''

Walker snaked over to Price's position, crouching behind a rather large tree. He unslung the sniper rifle from his back, replacing it with his submachine gun. He went prone, extending only his head, rifle and hands from behind the tree. Peering through his scope he spotted 10 soldiers, armed with assault rifle and machine guns and further in the distance, ten more.

He rolled back behind the tree and spoke to Price

''They're Tangos alright, 10 to our 12 and ten more further back.''

Price cursed, switching channels so he could speak with operations command.
''Oscar Charlie this is Badger, we've got 20 Tangos west of our position, over''

He waited anxiously for a reply.

''Badger, this is Oscar Charlie, do not engage, I'm contacting Hammer Two for re-extraction, wait out.''

Price cursed again, even if the chopper could come back for them, the enemy was too close to their landing zone. His ear piece crackled as Oscar Charlie spoke again,

''Badger, Hammer Two is at bingo fuel, he has to return to the mainland before he can come back. Is there somewhere you can hide?''

''We have currently taken position at our first point, it appears they are searching the island, they are quite close, over.''

''Roger that, it's your call, you are not to be captured, there is to be no evidence of you being on the island and the scientist stays safe, understood?''

''Understood, out.''

Price had a huge weight on his shoulders and a huge decision to make. He could engage the enemy and attempt to rapidly eliminate them or he could wait until they spotted him.

He decided it as best to just wait, but he had a plan. He pulled trip wire from his pocket. He began crawling down the hill, trying his best to remain behind cover.

Meanwhile, Cathy was ordered to pack up and move to the opposite side of the hill in hopes that in the event of a fire fight, she would be safe.

The men on point in Alpha Team had the edge of the jungle in sight, and beyond that, a grassy hill.

"Seems kind of quiet tonight, eh?" A soldier commented.

From where he was, behind the men on point, SSgt. Jacobs could not get a good view of the hill, and instead asked a soldier in front of him if the land outside the jungle was clear.

"Looks clear to me," he replied.

With Bravo team trailing behind, Alpha Team advanced towards the edge of the jungle to the hill.

Price cursed as he reached the bottom of the hill, crouching behind a very larger bush beside a tree. Through a small opening between the bush's branches he could see one line of soldiers rapidly approaching and another line behind them. Using the trip wire and a frag grenade, he created a booby trap all he had to do was cross in the open and tie it to another tree.

Suddenly he had an idea, but it would be dangerous and he would have to wait. In a whisper he spoke through his headset.

''Fireteam, take up positions on the west side of the hill. Walker, count to ten, then take a shot at the point man.''

Price pulled a smoke grenade from his vest, setting it beside him so it would be ready when he needed it. He then switched his rifle to three round burst and waited.

Walker peered through his scope, putting the cross hair right between the eyes of the man on point, all the while slowing his breathing, relaxing his muscles and counting.

''6...7..8...9...10''

He pulled the trigger and waited for the red mist. Price peeked out from behind the tree, firing burst after burst of ammunition at the approaching soldiers, then reaching for the smoke grenade, pulling the pin and rolling it just in front of him. He got back behind the tree and went prone, giving a very risky order through his headset to his men.

''Open fire!''
The gunner, grenadier, rifleman and sniper all began focusing their fire at the men below, as white smoke began to billow and obstruct their vision.

The point man's head exploded in a cloud of red as a sniper took him down. The other soldiers at point blankly stared at the point man in shock, but were quickly mowed down by a soldier from an unknown position.

"Open fire!" A foreign voice shouted.

"We got HOSTILES!" A soldier screamed before falling to the ground after being shot.

A veil of smoke concealed the hostiles' positions shortly after the ambush.

Jacobs was caught off guard, as six men in his group had went down in the time span of five seconds, their wails of death penetrating the night silence.

"Everyone fall back! Hostiles behind smoke!"

"Crap! Bravo Team, suppression fire!" Sgt. Andrews shouted about 30 metres behind Alpha team. Bravo Team complied, crouched down and fired blindly into the smoke.

"Suppressing hostiles!" A gunner shouted, the rapidly repeating BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM of his M240B echoing throughout the night sky.

The rest of Alpha team retreated the way they came, under the cover of Bravo's fire. A bullet caught SSgt's Jacob's leg, who crumpled down to the littered floor of the jungle.

"Ah! God Damnit!"

Sgt. Andrews radioed in to the other Marines combing the island. "Hostiles confirmed! We have no idea where, as they are currently concealed! Requesting assistance! Again, requesting assistance! All fire teams, we are ENGAGED IN COMBAT!"

Price cursed as the enemy returned fire. Luckily they were aiming at the top of the hill, rather than the bottom, so he was reasonably safe. He spoke through his headset,

''Cease fire and get behind cover, Potter, load up an HE grenade and count to ten, then fire. The I want the rest of you to suppress the enemy, I'm coming up the hill so watch your fire.''

As quickly as possible, Price unclipped two frag grenades from his belt, pulled the pins and waited. He heard the sound of Potter's grenade leaving its launcher and he turned, tossing his as far as they would go, hoping to take out more soldiers.

As the rest of his team put down their own suppressive fire, he made a bold move, darting up the side of the hill clutching a spool of trip wire which began to unwind.

<Bravo Team, this is Charlie Team. Friendlies are coming up at your six. Do NOT open fire at troops coming at your six.>

The smoke began to clear, as well as the hostiles' fire.

Bloomp!

A rifle-launched grenade exploded between two marines, injuring them severely. A second after that a grenade bounced off a tree and exploded harmlessly away from the fire team, but another one landed right about a couple of meters from a soldier and killed him.

Only seven marines in Bravo Team were in healthy condition, and Alpha Team was already rendered combat ineffective though three troops were still healthy enough to fight.

Just before they could catch their breath, the hostiles opened fire again, causing everyone to go prone instinctively.

The Marines returned fire, awaiting reinforcements from the other fireteams on the island.

"This ain't workin' Sarge, they turned this place into a killzone!" A young Private shouted over to Sgt. Andrews while letting off bursts of fire.

Sgt. Andrews decided that simply charging ahead would do no good, and radioed Charlie and Delta Team.

"Charlie and Delta Team, circle the jungle edge till you are clear of the hostile field of fire! Suggest you head split up and head both south and north! We'll keep them distracted!"

<Roger.>

<Roger that, Bravo leader.>

"Echo team, we could use some support fire over here!"

<We're heading over to your position right now. Watch your six, that's us.>

Price couldn't believe it, as he darted up the hill, throwing himself behind every bit of fire he could, he somehow managed to dodge the enemy fire. Just before he reached the peak, he sent orders through his head set to cease fire. He threw himself over the hill and slid behind a tree, coming to rest right beside Walker.

''Nice to see you sir, it looks to me like we've inflicted serious casulties.''

''Price chuckled, it would appear so.''

He had to decide what his next move would be. He wasn't sure if anyone else was on the island, but if they were, after all that noise, they would surely be coming. There wasn't really anywhere they could hide.

He looked around, as best he could, the only place he hadn't got a good look at was the north. He crawled over to the north side, keeping himself close enough to the top of the hill so that he wasn't in the enemy's field of fire. Below lay a less dense area of jungle, but also a small ditch which ran deeper into the jungle. It was risky, but it would give them a chance to hopefully get away. If they'd done enough damage, the enemy wouldn't be able to follow anyway. He spoke through his headset,

''Team, we are going to head down the north side of the hill, there is a small ditch we can take cover in, it will lead us farther into the jungle and away from the enemy. Rock and Walker, provide cover fire but remain in position, the rest of you, follow my lead''

Rock opened fire with his machine gun while Potter switched to his MP-5, hitting the enemy with fully automatic but still accurate blows.

Price burst from cover, throwing himself down the side of the hill. Because it was so muddy, he actually slid much of the way.

He was followed by Short who held onto Cathy, keeping her on the opposite side of the enemy, using his body to shield her from any bullets that might come her way.

Price reached the bottom and rolled into the ditch. It was about four feet deep and the drop hurt his ribs, however, he gripped his weapon and waited for Short and Cathy to join him.

He clutched the spool of wire which had now completely unraveled. All he had to do now was tug hard, and the grenade attached to the tree would go off, hopefully as the enemy charged forward.

"Bravo Team! Echo Team coming at your six!" Sgt. Colin shouted over from a hundred metres back. Sgt. Andrews glanced back and saw a team of ten friendlies advance towards them.

While Echo was advancing, Charlie and Delta were circling the jungle around the hill when they noticed that the hostiles had ceased fire.

Charlie and Delta were separate from each other, as Charlie had the north side and Delta had the south side. Neither teams had managed to travel far yet, but Delta could feel the ground getting a bit more sandy around their feet.

"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Sgt. Andrews ordered. Every Marine eased on his trigger and stopped firing. Echo Team positioned itself beside Bravo.

Sgt. Andrews surveyed the hill to see if there were any hostiles visible, if they any were retreating or reloading.

He issued a command for his fire team to get up and advance slowly. Just as he did this however, hostiles opened up machine gun fire and got two men advancing on the left of Sgt. Andrews. He spied flashes of light on the hill, sighted his M4, and pulled the trigger.

"Over there! Give 'em all you got!" Sgt. Andrews pointed out the origins of the flashes of light.

Bravo dropped back into prone position while firing rounds downrange towards the flashes of light on the hill.

<All's quiet on the Northern Front.> Charlie reported.

<Ditto. We're on a beach now, grassy field north of us. I assume the hill's there.> Delta added.

<Charlie here. We can't get to the hill from here, we'll have to keep heading east. Much too muddy. We can see the hill but we won't be able to climb it.>

"Roger. Delta, head north towards the grassy field, and Charlie, keep heading east till you can find a way to get near the hill." Sgt. Andrews radioed to the other fireteams.

Price watched as Cathy and Short slid into the trench. He ordered Cathy to stay down and Short to fire when he did. He tossed a smoke grenade into the jungle to obscure the view of the side of the hill which his teammates would be sliding down.

Walker cursed as bullets peppered the earth in front of him. He put a soldier in his cross hairs and prepared to fire. Suddenly, he felt like his left arm was on fire, then from his shoulder immense pain. He rolled onto his back behind a tree and looked over.

A bullet had entered from the top of his shoulder and by the looks of things, completely shattered his bone. He could see lots of blood and in a few spots, the eerie whiteness of chunks of blood, pieces of which were being carried out of the wound by the blood.

He heard Price give them the order to move. Below, in the ditch, Price and Short opened fire, sending round after round through the smoke cloud.

Walker stumbled to his feet, Rock was already at the top of the hill. Potter could tell something was wrong and when Walker turned to run, he noticed blood pouring from a large wound in his shoulder. He sprinted, catching up with Walker who was half running, half stumbling towards the side of the hill. Rock began sliding down, followed by Walker, who nearly fell on his face and Potter who followed them.

Rock slid into the ditch, landing feet first. Price turned and motioned for him to lay down fire. Rock took up a position alongside the other two men and added his machine gun fire as the smoke began clearing.

Walker had passed out and come to rest, half hanging in the ditch. Potter narrowly avoided hitting him, also landing feet first in the ditch. Grabbing him by his tactical vest, he hauled him into the ditch.

''Price! Price! Walker has been hit.''

Price turned and saw the bloody, crumpled unconscious body of Walker. He ordered Potter to get Rock and Short to stop laying down suppressive fire.

He then pulled a small first aid kit from a pocket on his vest, tearing it open he found what he needed. First he dumped a sanitizing solution on and into the wound. Walker began coming to. He then dumped a powder on the wound which would clot the blood. Then he put a gauze pad over the wound and began wrapping it with a roll of gauze.

Delta Team advanced from the beach at the southern end of the island towards the grassy meadow, as Charlie Team continued to try and find an opening into the field east of the hill.

The other two fire teams (Alpha was combat ineffective) were exchanging fire at the edge of the jungle near the foot of the hill.

Suddenly the enemy's machine gun stopped firing, and a smoke grenade landed in front of the team, obscuring their vision. A split second of silence was quickly followed up by rifle fire coming from a different direction.

"Cease fire and take cover!" Sgt. Andrews commanded, as the hostile fire coming from behind the grey cloud was whizzing above their heads. All of the soldiers complied and hit the dirt, prone.

He gave the order to advance, but to stay prone and crawl to avoid enemy fire. The two fireteams began to inch towards the smoke and the hostiles.

OOC: My apologies. Got home later that night due to volunteering. By the way, by the sounds of it all your men are in the ditch at the northern end of the hill, correct?

If not, the exact location of them would clear things up.
My men are at the edge of the western jungle (Bravo and Echo), advancing through the beach towards the grassy meadow (Delta, they exited the jungle in the last post) and along the northern jungle edge heading east (Charlie, they're probably already past the ditch your men are in)

OOC: No need to apologize and yes, all of my men are now in the ditch.
IC:
As the men stopped firing Price heard static, then a familiar voice through his ear piece.

''Badger this is Oscar Charlie, Hammer Two has just arrived and is being refueled as we speak.''

Price's face lit up with a beaming smile.

''Roger Oscar Charlie, we have been engaged, one man has been hit, any chance you can get a medic on the chopper?''


''I can do that Badger, I'll send two. Is the original LZ clear?''

''Negative, we've got contacts way too close for comfort. We'll contact Hammer Two with coordinates, out.''

Price knew he had to get his team as far away from the enemy as possible, in hopes that they could escape and get a clear landing zone. The west contained to many contacts, and the east and south provided no cover. The only way to go was farther north. He remembered that the trench ran about 10 meters into the jungle before it got too shallow to provide any concealment. He spoke through the headset.

''Team, we have to get out of here, the safest way is north. Short and Rock are going to watch the enemy while Potter and I drag Walker to the end of this ditch. Cathy, you too.''

With the order given, he passed the spool of wire to Rock, instructing him what to do with it. Then he and Potter began dragging Walker through the trench, keeping low, while Cathy followed.

They reached the end of the trench, laying down Walker carefully. He was beginning to regain consciousness. Price and Potter then peered over the edge of the trench, watching for signs of enemy movement as Rock and Short headed through the trench, keeping low.

From here, Price scouted out another area that might provide him cover and allow him to escape from the enemy. It was dark and he wasn't sure if the enemy had night vision goggles. Their uniforms were treated to repel IR rays, but that didn't mean that they would work.

He noticed an outcropping of rocks and several fallen tree stumps, farther behind, the ground appeared to go downhill. He was out of smoke grenades, so he ordered Rock to toss one. As it billowed, He hoisted Walker onto his back and motioned for his team to follow.

The team obeyed, running through the open, taking care to ensure that at least one of their bodies blocked Cathy's.

If the soldiers had been issued night vision goggles, they would have donned them by now. Command in their infinite wisdom had not been expecting enemy resistance and as such, had only provided goggles to team leaders.

The hostiles' guns stopped firing and the smoke dissipated, and an eerie silence hovered around the soldiers. Bravo and Echo kept inching ahead, while Sgt. Andrews kept counting silently to himself of the period of time the enemy had ceased fire for.

"1...2...3...4..."

"It's been over ten seconds. Let's move!" Sgt. Andrews led the way as he got up and advanced cautiously towards the hill that the hostiles had been firing from a few minutes ago.

---

<This is Delta, we are on the field and can see the hill about three hundred or so metres in front of us. Can't see crap from here, but I'm pretty sure there are no hostiles.>

"Roger that, continue towards-" Sgt. Andrews spotted a smoke cloud from north of his position in the corner of his eye. Only on the base of the hill, he directed his fireteam to run towards the top of the hill to get a better position to fire at the smoke cloud from. Two soldiers led the way as he fired a few bursts into the grey unknown.

"Continue north, Delta!" He told Delta Team, to complete his sentence.

Echo Team instead ran directly toward the cloud of smoke as they were confident that Andrews' Bravo Team could draw away enemy fire.

Luckily, they had managed to dive behind the rocks before any shooting had started. Their booby trap could no longer be used, so they left it, hoping perhaps someone might spot the wire and think that traps had been hooked up. They had originally got behind the rocks and faced west, however, Rock spotted the enemy advancing.

Price counted again and ordered his team to follow, running through the open ground, rushing towards what he only hoped was a decline. It would at least provide them cover.

In a few short seconds, the soldiers and Cathy slid over the edge of the decline. It was roughly a 45 degree slope, which lead down into a valley full of dense shrubbery. Price saw it as the perfect chance to escape. Short tapped his shoulder,

''We've got several contacts, approaching our position through the smoke. Several more on the hill.''

Price couldn't tell how many were approaching through the smoke because of the heat of the smoke grenade but he could see shapes up on the hill, shapes which likely just spotted them running for cover.

Again he wasn't sure whether to engage the enemy or break contact. If they had spotted him and they broke contact, they would be able to use the top of the slope as a firing position, leaving him and his team helpless if they didn't manage to get far enough in the jungle.

Suddenly he had his answer, but he had to act fast to avoid the men on the hill informing the men in the smoke of their position.

''Potter, load up a 40mm, I want you to hit the cloud of smoke after counting to five. Rock, spray that cloud with lead. Short, take Walker.''


Price put Walker down, allowing Short to pick him up. He then dug his elbows in the dirt, going prone and looking through his sights at a target on the hill. He waited.

All of a sudden, all hell broke lose. The grenade left the launcher, soaring towards the cloud of smoke. Before it reached it, Rock pulled the trigger and simultaneously the enemy troops in the cloud would be assaulted by the explosion and shrapnel of the grenade and the armor piercing rounds which exited Rock's machine gun.

Price pulled his own trigger, sending a three round burst towards the hill before choosing another target and firing.

A soldier ran up the hill and tripped a wire that blew up a booby trap, dismembering him and injured and threw two teammates running beside him about a couple of metres.

The remainder of Bravo (About four men) along with Alpha (three men) managed to make it to the top of the hill and watch over Echo's advance into the smoke.

With weapons aimed at the cloud of smoke, Bravo and Alpha prepared to open fire but instead stared in disbelief when an explosion occurred in the smoke cloud, killing five men in Echo's tight-knit formation. The remaining men in Echo retraced their tracks, but were gunned down by machine gun fire coming from behind the smoke.

"Echo Team is down! I repeat, Echo is down! All ten!"

<What?>

The Marines had sustained heavy losses and were ready to throw in the towel. Only Charlie had no casualties, and the fireteam had just got out of the jungle into the eastern meadow, about a couple of minutes away from the action.

"Everyone, go prone!" Sgt. Andrews shouted as he attempted to protect his team from enemy fire from below.

"This is Sgt. Andrews of Bravo Team, requesting AH-1 support! Sustained heavy casualties and we need reinforcements!"

OOC: You said no vehicles, but I thought adding in an attack helicopter would shake things up a bit. Your call, a no's fine if you want to keep it to infantry. Also, my last post for the night.

Price ordered Rock to quit firing.

''Everyone, down the hill, now!''

He began running down the hill, but due to the angle and slipperiness, he fell, sliding down to the bottom followed by Potter, Cathy, Rock and Short, who was dragging Walker with him. Upon reaching the bottom, Walker came too.

''What the fuck is going on?''

Price laughed, grabbing the man and pulling him to his feet.

''We've just taken out what amounts to be about two fucking whole platoon, now lets go.''

He placed Walker's uninjured arm over his back, supporting him as they ran in case he passed out again. As they ran deeper into the jungle, he yelled an order.

''Short, toss a smoke grenade to your east, let's throw these bastards off.''

Short did as he was told, then Price made an abrupt turn, taking the team west.

OOC: The chopper idea is fine with me, as when my Blackhawk comes back, it'll be equipped with a couple guns. Also, when my helicopter comes to provide rescue, would you like it to be shot down? If that happens we can continue the RP for awhile and I'll probably have reinforcements flown in.

<This is Command, helicopter support is on the way.. Should be about five minutes.>

"Roger that, Command." Sgt. Andrews responded. Charlie was coming over from the east; he signaled for them to stay quiet and hold their fire.

Another smoke grenade popped off in the jungle, obscuring any hostiles behind it.

The soldiers were all exhausted, with the deaths of their comrades taking a heavy mental toll amongst the recruits, as well as the Sergeants. None had the will to fight for any longer. No one was expecting resistance this formidable, let alone resistance at all. Sgt. Andrews made it clear to his squad and the others that they would not be pursuing the hostiles into the jungle.

What these soldiers needed was a morale boost; they were waiting for it in the form of an attack helicopter.

OOC: I'm fine with the chopper being shot down,but just don't do it with the Blackhawk because I (as well as you) am going to have a hard time believing a transport helicopter can shoot down an attack helicopter. Unless you stuck AA missiles on it or something.

OOC: Hehe, what I meant was, would you like to shoot down my Blackhawk?

The team continued, pressing further west, full out sprinting through the jungle. After about five minutes, this began to take a toll on Walker and Price found himself nearly dragging his friend. He ordered his team to stop and form ''all around defense'', leaving Walker and Cathy in the center. He took Walker's sniper rifle from his back and used the scope to peer through the jungle back the way they came. He couldn't see any sign of the enemy, however, he could see white wisps of smoke just over the tree line. The last of the smoke from the grenade. He wasn't sure if he was being followed, but he didn't want to wait. He consulted his GPS.

He looked it over carefully, they were just under a kilometer from the western beach. Providing that the beach was wide open and flat, it would make an excellent location for extraction. He pulled a laminated satellite photo from his pocket.

He searched for the western beach. It appeared rather large and free from rocks. He wouldn't known for sure until he seen it for himself though.

Over the Ocean - 15 Minutes From The Western Beach
Hammer Two's rotors again cut through the sky which was beginning to clear. The pilot was pushing the helicopter as hard as it would go, trying to get to the island as fast as he could. Behind him in the crew cabin sat field medic Master Corporal Jesse and seated at both doors, two soldiers manning the GAU-19 door mounted mini guns.

The pilot was just about to contact the troops on the ground when his headset's ear piece crackled.

''Hammer Two this is Badger, primary LZ has been overrun, can you proceed to grid ******?.''

The co-pilot consulted the GPS, showing the location of the coordinates given.

''Badger I can get there but is it safe to land?''

''I'm not sure, we'll check it out and mark it with smoke.''

''Roger that Badger, out.''

On The Island
Price allowed his team the opportunity to drink and eat, though quickly. Then he informed them of what was to happen.

''We've got about 10 minutes until we are extracted. We need to get to the beach, scout out a landing zone and hopefully by that time, the chopper will be there. We need to move quick, if we take to long, the chopper will have to leave.''

The team formed a line, and briskly continued on towards the beach. As they got closer they noticed the foliage became less dense.

OOC: My bad, heheh... Sure.



-----

Sgt. Andrews watched the horizon for any sign of a helicopter from the hill, in the direction from which they came from. It was still night, and could not see much in the dark sky except for stars. He donned his night vision goggles.

"There!"

A speck of a helicopter appeared in the distance, its grey body contrasting against the black night sky. The whirr of its blades was soft at first, but grew louder as it came nearer.

<Evening, gentlemen. This is Arrow 2-1, we'll be providing chopper support.>

"Thank GOD!" Sgt. Andrews breathed a sigh of relief. "This is Bravo team leader. We're dealing with a squad of hostile infantry, we have no idea where they are, they may be in the jungle."

<Roger that, Bravo Leader, FLIR is on. Request you deploy an IR strobe where you are to avoid friendly fire.>

Sgt. Andrews took a strobe out and switched it on, and placed it where it would be visible on the hill.

"Strobe is out. Avoid firing on the hill, the strobe and our squad is on there."

<I'll keep that in mind.>

Price breathed a sign of relief as he heard the helicopter's rotors cut through the air. At first he thought it was Hammer Two coming to rescue them but he soon realized something was wrong. Looking through his night vision goggles he could tell that the helicopter wasn't a Blackhawk. It's profile appeared to be that of an attack helicopter. He cursed his luck.

They had made it too the beach and scouted out a possible landing site, all they would have to do now is mark it. Looking into the horizon he could see the Blackhawk was now rapidly approaching.

''Everyone in the jungle, split up, find a nice place to hide, we've got an attack helicopter coming in.''

His team obeyed, splitting up and finding a place to hide. Price radioed the Blackhawk.

''Hammer Two, this is Badger, we've got an attack helicopter approaching our position.''

Price decided not to mark his position, not wanting the enemy attack helicopter to spot them. Instead he attempted to contact operations command.

''Oscar Charlie, this is Badger, we've got an attack helicopter coming in... Hammer Two is approaching also, I tried to contact them to get them to abort but I haven't got an answer.''

Back in the command center, nobody heard his call.

The Cobra was getting close to the beaches, when the co-pilot noticed another helicopter in the distance, appearing as a splotch of heat on the IR imaging. Command had sent them off on such short notice that they hadn't set out a clear set of rules for engagement.

<Shit, we got a bogey comin' in. Requesting permission to engage.> The co-pilot prepped the missiles and attempted to get a lock-on while waiting for a response from Command. The pilot flew the Cobra back for a short distance while facing the direction of the other chopper in case it was armed.

Command responded almost immediately. <Arrow Two-One, permission granted.> The helicopter came nearer, and the splotch of heat grew into a Blackhawk.

<Waitin' for a good lock-on... Arrow Two-One, Fox Two!> The pilot said through his headset.

A flash of light erupted at the side of the Cobra, and the Sidewinder darted off towards the Blackhawk.

The Blackhawk was now less than two hundred meters from the beach. The pilot spotted the enemy attack helicopter but before he could do anything, he saw the flash of light. The pilot attempted to turn the helicopter and dive at the same time. He screamed through his headset to the soldiers in the back.

''Incoming, hold on.''

As he said this the missile struck the tail rotor, tearing it completely off in a fiery blaze. Fearing that he would lose control of the helicopter and crash it, he instead dove for the ocean, thinking that they might at least have some chance of survival. The co pilot began broadcasting an emergency message,

''Mayday! Mayday! Hammer Two going down.''

Luckily for them, the radio equipment on the helicopter was much more sophisticated than that of the soldiers on the ground, and the message went through. Before they received a reply, the Blackhawk crashed belly first into the sea below, slightly bouncing, then sliding across the ocean before slowing and tipping, easily pushed over by the waves.

The pilot and co pilot were thrown forward, however their harnesses protected them. Both men rapidly unbuckled as the helicopter began to rapidly fill with water. The pilot reached for his standard issue submachine gun, however the water swept it from his reach leaving him with only his pistol.

The medic had been strapped into a seat and survived and one soldier had managed to brace himself. The other wasn't so lucky and had been thrown head first into the wall which divided the cabin from the cockpit. He was knocked unconscious and was bleeding from a wound on his head. As the cabin began to fill with water, the medic grabbed her collapsible stretcher which had began to float away and quickly clipped it to her tactical vest. She and the other soldier pulled the unconscious man from the cabin, into the ocean water, soon followed by the pilot and co pilot.

The water was freezing and still rough from the early storm and the still whipping winds. They were close enough to the beach that there was a chance they could swim for it. The unconscious man regained consciousness after feeling the cold water, so he could at least swim. The group tried to stay together as best they could, paddling for the shore.

Island
Price and his team had watched the helicopter go down in horror. Not only was that helicopter their only chance of hope it contained their fellow soldiers and airmen who they were sure would die. None of them dared move, fearing that they would be spotted by the helicopter above. Price attempted to gain radio communication with operations command.

''Oscar Charlie, Hammer Two is down, I say again, Hammer Two is down.''

He received no reply, however, since OC had received Hammer Two's communication, they were already planning another, larger rescue.

Operations Command - Fordyk
General Arthur Fox was the man in charge of the operation however for what he was about to do he knew he had to ask permission from a higher up. He also knew he was about to be in big trouble but to him, that was something he would have to suffer through. He picked up a phone, a direct link to the General Rick Green, the Field Marshal of the entire armed forces. He rang twice, then a gruff voice answered.

''General Green, I'm General Arthur Fox calling about Operation Sea Light.''

The General replied in a gruff voice, though this time more annoyed.

''What went wrong General.''


''Despite our early intelligence reports, enemy forces have appeared on the island. They also have a fleet stationed just off the coast of that island. We have a team trapped on the island, the helicopter that was supposed to be rescuing them was shot down.''

''Shot down, how the fuck could this happen! Where was the helicopter shot down?''

''Just off the western coast of the island sir.''

''And just what the fuck do you plan to do about it Fox?''

''Well sir, with your permission, there is a carrier group not far away. Although I know we can't go to full out war over this, I'd like to request two of their SH-60 Seahawks to find the Blackhawk wreckage, locate possible survivors and blow the thing up leaving no way to trace it back to us.''

''Thats good thinking Fox.''

''These helicopters can also rescue those on the island.''

The phone went dead. Fox picked up another nearby phone in order to put his plan into action.

FNS Blizzard
The carrier was drifting just off of the coast of Fordyk, participating in a patrol operation set to end in less than a week. Much of this mission proved boring, so the next events would spice things up.

One SH-60B Seahawk and one HH-60H Rescuehawk were checked, fueled and armed for the coming mission. It would take them roughly ten minutes to arrive at the island. his would be an eternity for the troops on the ground and in the water.

<Whew! That's a kill.> The co-pilot said as the Cobra strafed over the island.

Command wasn't as interested in the kill, but moreso in the wreckage. <Any survivors, Arrow Two-One?>

<The Blackhawk didn't explode, sir. We'll get a closer look at the crash site, it fell in the water. We can see some heat from here, but that could just be Blackhawk wreckage, we're too far for a clear image.>

The pilot's earpiece crackled with Command's voice. <That's a negative, Arrow Two-One. Support the Marines back at the island. The enemy will be looking for their helicopter though, so we'll arrange for some reinforcements. We'll get another team to look for survivors, stay frosty out there.>

OSS Lady Cheryl

The order had been given out for another two LCAC teams to head towards the island. They weren't there for the island however; they were there to collect the Blackhawk survivors, and to get the Marines on that island out. This time, they were coming prepared.

--

"Looks like Command gave us the go," said a Marine as he pulled out a Stinger missile launcher from its crate and headed down to the LCAC.

"Yeah. Let's just hope they forgot their flares! Damn things screw with these missiles..." another Marine joked.

Two gruff Marine Sergeants was waiting for the small task force of twenty soldiers, down at the deck where the LCACs were. They organized themselves into two teams and got into their respective watercrafts.

The motors of the LCACs started humming as they left the deck of the Wasp-class helicopter carrier.

"Well, let's get this party started."

Three of the five persons present on the helicopter had managed to survive the swim to shore. The injured man soldier quickly went unconscious and drowned, the group unable to pull him. The co pilot became to fatigued to swim and he to drown. The medic, pilot and soldier couldn't risk drowning trying to save them or spending to much time in the water which could possibly give them hypothermia. The three managed to swim onto the beach less than two hundred meters away from Price's position. He spotted them as they rushed into the jungle. He ordered Short to find them quickly. Although it was risky Walker needed a medic.

Short threw caution to the wind getting up from his position and sprinting full tilt towards the crew's position. As he got closer, he shouted

''Don't fire, I'm a friendly.''

From the corner of the co-pilot's field of view on the FLIR imaging system, he spotted three white blobs run into a jungle across from the beach, and mistook them for hostile infantry.

<We've got hostiles moving into the jungle! Opening fire!>

The jungle blocked out the any image of the three survivors. The co-pilot directed the pilot to face the beach and the jungle near it, and pointed the cannon towards the jungle.

Three 20mm barrels on the Cobra's chin whirred as they prepared to fire. The barrels unleashed a firestorm of lead towards the jungle which the survivors had run into, making a sound like a buzzsaw as it peppered the ground with shells.

--

OSS Lady Cheryl's LCACs were moving as fast as they could towards the island, while the men inside watched the sky for helicopters. Harsh weather, combined with rough water creating huge amounts of splash added to the soldier's discomfort while waiting to get to the island. The watercrafts fought against the ocean's waves, making for a rough ride.

The three survivors were horrified as many bullets began peppering the ground around them and literally tearing trees in half. In the first ten seconds, nobody was hit as they desperately scrambled to find any kind of cover. As the fire continued, the co pilot was hit twice in the legs then seconds later, twice in the chest.

Short had seen the helicopter approaching and heard the sound of the gun. He knew they had been spotted so he also knew it wouldn't matter if he engaged the helicopter.

He ran from the jungle, onto the beach and pointed his rifle at the helicopter, firing burst after burst. He then took his last smoke grenades and pulled the pins. Tossing one at his feet as he hid and the others towards the survivors. He knew even through the helicopter's imaging systems were sophisticated, the heat from the smoke grenade would render then useless. He also knew prolonged exposure to the smoke would kill them, so he called out

''I'm an AC soldier, where are you.''

The field medic called back.

''We're over here.''

Short ran through the smoke which had begun to billow, rushing towards the sound of her voice.

Ocean
The two helicopters had just come over the horizon. Using their GPS as well as the equipment normally used to detect submarines they managed to located the wreck even before they got close. They also spotted an attack helicopter and a massive cloud of smoke. Quickly they radioed command.

''Oscar Charlie this is Lantern One, we have enemy attack helicopter in sight, permission to abort.''

''Negative Lantern One, locate the crash sight, destroy it at all costs. Do not attempt rescue of any kind.''

Reluctantly the two helicopters remained in the area. The SH-60 Seahawk loaded up three MK-50 torpedoes, more than enough to destroy the wreckage and fired. Within seconds the torpedoes reached the helicopter creating a massive chain of explosions sending a large burst of water flying from the surface. They then turned and began to flee, all the while Price watching wondering what was going on.

The smoke covered the IR signature of the hostiles in the jungle, making the pilots unsure of where they were.

<Damn smoke! Lost them!> The co-pilot said.

<When in doubt, use rockets...> The pilot responded, almost with a tint of dark humor.

The Cobra fired two 2.75 inch rockets towards the cloud of smoke then passed over the jungle in preparation for another attack run. As the helicopter turned around, an explosion distracted the co-pilot momentarily, and he turned his head to see that the wreckage had been destroyed.

<They got the wreckage! Enemy helicopters!>

This message was relayed back to Command, who promptly responded with:

<Make a new one then, you've got a single Sidewinder remaining.>

<Lock-on is weak from the distance they're at, but, Fox Two!>

The Sidewinder launched off the hardpoint on the Cobra and sped towards one of the helicopters fleeing from the island. The pilots weren't confident that the missile was given an opportunity to lock on properly, and asked for permission to chase them down.

<Arrow Two-One, your priority is the protection of those Marines and the island. Those helicopters are too far out, anyway.>

ooc: Didn't your copilot die when he drowned? Also, this is my last post for the night.

OOC: Yes he did, I meant pilot... sorry.
The rockets pierced through the smoke and the jungle foliage, exploding around the survivors and Short. The force and heat of the explosions felled trees and set several on fire while the shrapnel ripped trees apart and eventually found their targets.

The pilot who, despite his wounds had still been living was instantly killed. Short was also killed, thrown to the ground by the explosion and badly burned. As he attempted to flee he was hit by a large piece of shrapnel which embedded in his forehead.

The soldier from the helicopter was also killed, crushed and then burnt by a tree which had been ripped in half and set ablaze.

The only person who survived was the medic. She had found herself a small ditch and climbed into but not before her leg had nearly been severed by a piece of shrapnel. She was a medical professional and she knew she would die. She was already suffering from the effects of hypothermia and she knew that she would soon go into a state of shock. Rather than trying to treat herself and use valuable supplies, she rose, using a stick as a crutch as she walking through the thinning smoke, trying to find out if anyone had survived. All she could see was fire, destruction and death.

Price had watched this event unfold and as he did, he ordered Rock to begin firing. Rock moved so he could see the helicopter and began firing with his machine gun. As the helicopter turned to find the source of the explosion, it further exposed itself to the fire.

Ocean
The helicopters knew they were being followed and quickly dove towards the sea. This would help confuse any heat seeking munition that might be fired at them. When the enemy helicopter did, they both deployed flares, hoping to confuse the missile.

The pilot of Lantern One radioed the FNS Blizzard.

''We have been targeted by munitions and are being pursued by an enemy attack helicopter, requesting support over.''

The Blizzard responded.

''Negative Lantern One, reach our airspace, if fired upon then we will take action. Keep us posted.''

<Damnit, it didn't connect.. Ah, fuck!>

Command gave an almost knee-jerk reaction when he heard the co-pilot yelp. <What the hell happened, Arrow Two-One?>

Bullets were glancing off the helicopter's chassis and one managed to find its way into the cockpit, penetrating the co-pilot's leg. The pilot pulled the Cobra out of the field of fire to avoid any further injury.

<I've got a fucking bullet in my fucking leg!>

Command gave off a grunt of frustration. Things just kept going wrong one after another. <Very well, return to base. We'll send another Cobra to cover you.>

---

OSS Lady Cheryl

Arrow Two-Two was instantly given a quick pre-flight checkup. Though since Command wasn't expecting to have to send out a second chopper, the Cobra wasn't completely armed yet.

Helicopter mechanics and engineers surrounded the chopper, while one wheeled in two rocket pods and another wheeled in Sidewinder missiles. The others were checking the engines, blades, and the cannon to make sure everything was in order.

The two pilots ran up the short staircase that aided pilots to get themselves within the cockpit and seated themselves.

"It's gonna take a while to install these, probably about five minutes. Sit tight for a while." one of the mechanics said to the pilots, while holding a clipboard.

---

LCACs, just off the shore of the Island

The fierce night wind pounded the faces of the Marines as they waited anxiously for the watercrafts to reach the island. They were most likely about only a couple of minutes from the beach, by the crew's best estimate. While waiting, the radios came alive with Command's voice., slightly covered by the mild static in the background.

Marines, the helicopter wreckage has been destroyed. Your objective now is to just get our remaining men off the island, and head back to the Lady Cheryl. Do it fast, and do it safely. Stick to the LCAC as the Marines on the island will come to you.

The medic coughed and sputtered, the smoke from both the grenade and rocket blasts prevented her from taking in fresh air. She became light headed and dizzy, however she pressed on through the smoke, searching for survivors.

She came upon the body of the pilot first, then the soldier. She didn't have to check, she knew they were both dead. She walked towards where she had last heard a man's voice and found Short, also dead. She picked up the man's rifle and staggered towards the beach.

Price had watched as Rock's bullets peppered the enemy helicopter and forced it to flee. Rock spotted the medic stagger onto the beach and rushed toward her.

''Don't shoot, I'm friendly. Where are the others?''

She stumbled towards him, coughing and sputtering as she gasped for fresh air.

''cough...cough...dead.''

She collapsed on the ground, unconscious, hypothermic, loosing lots of blood and in a state of shock. Rock knew she was in bad shape. He rushed over, taking her med pack and stretcher before tossing her over his shoulder and rushing towards Price who had walked onto the beach.

Price watched to see if the enemy helicopter was going to come back around. Satisfied it wouldn't, he radioed the two helicopters which were fleeing.

''Lantern One this is Badger, enemy helicopter is fleeing, please return...I say again, enemy helicopter is fleeing, please return.''

The pilot checked his fuel gage and radioed command. He was given the green light and he turned the helicopter, rushing full speed back towards the island. Rather than risking both helicopters, only the Rescuehawk was sent back.

Price and Rock dragged the medic back into the jungle, carrying her over and setting he beside Walker. As they fumbled through the medpack searching for supplies, the medic's heart stopped and she began to die.

Price knew that CPR would be a waste of time and she would likely die anyway. Triage training taught him that it was more important to focus on the casualty that has a good chance of making it. Rock and Price rolled him onto the medic's collapsible stretcher. Rock inserted and IV into one of Walker's arm veins. He then removed the old bandages which had become blood soaked and dirty. He applied more clotting powder, another gauze pad and wrapped the wound again.

Price called his team, and ordered them to form all around defense. He faced the ocean, watching as the outline of the approaching helicopter became bigger and bigger.

OOC: Bump.

OOC: I thought you hadn't posted on this thread because my subscriptions kept telling me that I was the last one to post...

Sorry about that. I'll make a full post later since I don't have the time right now.

Sgt. Andrews was waiting on the hill with the other Marines for the green light to head to the extraction zone on the western beach.

"That is a negative, Marines. LCACs are still about ten minutes from shore. Hostile elements may still be in the jungle so we suggest you play it safe." Command relayed over to Bravo Team's radio set.

Just then another Marine that had been watching the sky had spotted the profile of a helicopter, getting larger by the second. The sound of the blades swishing through the air grew louder as it came closer.

"I don't think that's ours, Sarge!"

"That definitely is not one of ours..." Sgt. Andrews told the young Marine. "Command, we have a helicopter closing in fast, assumed it is hostile! Where are those LCACs!"

It was barely a minute since Sgt. Andrews had last asked for the time of arrival of those hovercrafts."Just sit tight, Marines! We've almost got you."

Sgt. Andrews was now extremely wary of the jungle and preferred to stay somewhere where his Marines could watch their surroundings from a long distance - but the helicopter closing in made this impossible. He would have to choose between a clear line of vision and adequate cover from the helicopter.

Sgt. Andrews decided that if the hostile infantry didn't get them, the helicopter would. He ordered his team to head north towards the thick jungle hoping to hide from the rapidly approaching helicopter. He ordered the other Marines to lay low, and keep themselves looking small as possible.

He counted the casualties silently in his head while waiting. Alpha team had sustained seven losses, and his own Bravo team had taken three. The whole of Echo team was wiped out, and Charlie and Delta had just regrouped with his Marines. Coming to a total of...

"Seventeen men. Seventeen good men," he muttered under his breath.

The helicopter got closer and closer until Price left his hidden position bounding into the sand. He began guiding the helicopter into a safe landing site. In mere seconds, Price organized the group and they ran from the jungle, on mass and began loading into the helicopter. As soon as the group had safely loaded on, Price jumped into the helicopter behind them.

The helicopter rapidly ascended into the sky which was becoming lighter by the second as the morning sun rose. Price had a lot to think about, he had just experienced the conflict of a lifetime, something he wouldn't soon forget.

Sgt. Andrews picked up his canteen and took a sip of water as he watched the helicopter leave, its outline getting smaller as it left the island with its cargo on board.

After what must have been the longest night of his life, he sat down and rested himself against a tree trunk. His radio crackled to life telling him the extraction hovercrafts had arrived at the beach and they could finally evacuate the island.

An Oslean attack helicopter soared overhead as he ordered his Marines to make their way towards the beach which the LCACs had landed at. He noticed one of his men wander off to a spot where a woman's body lay.

The Marine stared at the woman. She had a deep cut on her leg, and had dried, caked blood around her mouth. Sgt. Andrews called the soldier from the hovercraft and told him to hurry.

He looked for an insignia, a logo, anything that would have identified her. Everything was badly burnt or ripped; nothing was immediately intelligible. In his haste, he left the corpse and rushed to the hovercrafts.

The hovercrafts closed their doors and jetted off the island back to the Lady Cheryl. The fatigued Marines sat silently, having just come out of Hell.

Sgt. Andrews turned his head and looked back at the island. "Hoo-ah," he said in a melancholy tone, to honor the soldiers who died that night.

Several Marines joined after him. "Hoo-ah!"