With the danger of the Drathonians' massive Hammerbeast soundly defeated and the latest assault pushed back life went back to as normal as it got when one resided in the only fortress on Foothold. Marines and Miners slung their weapons over their shoulders and went to work dragging corpses away from the walls – those of the enemy to be burned while fallen defenders were taken deep inside to be mourned for one last time – under the reassuring eye of the heavy guns.
As the ground finally cleared up the work crews and their heavy machinery returned to the front in force to busy themselves repairing any all damages made to the walls – including the now gaping hole that was the setting for the 82nd Division, C Company, Squad 22's fight against the Drathonian warbeast.
Squad 22 themselves were amongst the swarm of exhausted soldiers that were dismissed as soon as the repair teams had been sent out to remedy the damages incurred by the assault. Sent to the barracks with stern smiles and quiet words of congratulation the relieved marines did not need to be told that this was one of the best chances they would have to get in any decent amount of sleep.
The fight was, as always, far from done.
For some, only a scant few hours after returning to the barracks, the fight was also coming back for a quick and rather unwelcome visit. Private Dominic Connelly, Private First Class Asher Westwood (recently and informally honoured for his bravery in jumping onto the back of the Hammerbeast), and Private First Class Pepper Mills were all wrested from the sweet solace of sleep and told to gear up, shut up, and be ready for combat by the burly forms of devil faced Sergeants. Without even the chance to rub the sleep from their eyes the three marines were forced to struggle into their armour and shoulder their weapons before being shoved unceremoniously off in the direction of one of the fortress's lower levels.
As this all happened Sergeant Lucette Winters was more politely awoken and allowed to dress before being thrown in front of a serious looking Captain who informed her, most gravely, that one of the Foothold force's long ranging infiltration specialists, a Lieutenant James Stilt, had been detected by the enemy. He was currently hiding as Drathonian hunting parties combed the jungle for him and had managed to radio his situation in along with a request for help.
As his explanation ended the Captain smiled and let Winters know that the successful retrieval and extraction of Lt. Stilt was of the utmost importance and in light of Squad 22's recent success that they would be perfect for the job.
And of course, the only way to achieve this mission was to use the Terran's current greatest asset: the tunnels.
– –
Already waiting at the area that the rest of the squad had been directed to Private Emma Card was leaning up against the wall across from a series of four propped open access hatches that led downwards into the tunnels that the native miners had spent the last two years creating in order to hold even a single advantage over the invading lizards. Card, dressed in her heavy suit of Savior armour and with her sugar propped up against the wall beside her, did not move about to peer down into the dimly lit and hopefully safely laddered passage into the subterranean highway that was her and the rest of Squad 22's destination. The Private was in fact not moving at all.
With her eyes closed and helmet off and belted at her side Card had rolled up her unissued stealth poncho behind her head to use as a cushion. All-in-all Emma appeared to be taking the time that she was waiting on the others to show up sleeping on her feet.
Which, seeing as how when the others had been dismissed to barracks Card had been pulled aside by an Armoury Sergeant who interrogated her on how exactly her gear had become as damaged as it had and found her explanation of having a wall fall on it unacceptable and put her to work, may have been understandable.
Judging from the unruly state of her pale hair, the dark crescent under her closed eyes and the splotches of weapon's oil still lightly streaking across her face this may in fact of been Emma's first chance to get in a few moments of rest since the battle earlier that day.
Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
"Noooo...I can't eat another bite Mister Mackinnon..."
In her sleep, the green headed Pepper stirred as she lay on her back, sprawled out in her cot and blissfully dreaming of delicious, succulent foods. It wasn't until the next course was served that it all vanished in a blink of an eye. As she sat up, eyes still weary and confused, the young marine looked about. And when Pepper realized where she was? Started to sniffle and cry as she suited up and marched out with the others. "The fooood....the foooood," she tearfully moaned. "It was all so good..." the marine spoke, mourning the loss of epic dreamtime treats.
By the time they were at the assembly area however, Pepper had rubbed most of the sand in her eyes, but was still slightly tearful for her loss.
In her sleep, the green headed Pepper stirred as she lay on her back, sprawled out in her cot and blissfully dreaming of delicious, succulent foods. It wasn't until the next course was served that it all vanished in a blink of an eye. As she sat up, eyes still weary and confused, the young marine looked about. And when Pepper realized where she was? Started to sniffle and cry as she suited up and marched out with the others. "The fooood....the foooood," she tearfully moaned. "It was all so good..." the marine spoke, mourning the loss of epic dreamtime treats.
By the time they were at the assembly area however, Pepper had rubbed most of the sand in her eyes, but was still slightly tearful for her loss.
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Contrary to Pepper’s pleasant dream about food, Dom slept with a scowl on his face as he dreamed about himself fully suited up in his armor while sinking into a lake of crushed coal fruit. As he struggled to swim out the mushy fruit began to find its way into the many nooks and crannies of his armor, and gunking up his joints. Thankfully, the call to wake up was given, and the engineer groggily sat up in his cot feeling more tired than when he had first gone to sleep.
“Well, that was in no way restful,†Dom groaned to himself as he got up.
After suiting up Dom made his way out to the assembly area with the other privates, and all the way he kept checking the joints of his armor to ensure they had been cleaned as well as he could expect and thus was clear of any pulverized fruit. When he reached the designated spot he welcomed the moment he got to try and rest his eyes a bit more, taking a note from the already present Card’s book.
“You look like you had fun, Card,†Dom said to the other marine, observing the many stains on her armor.
“Well, that was in no way restful,†Dom groaned to himself as he got up.
After suiting up Dom made his way out to the assembly area with the other privates, and all the way he kept checking the joints of his armor to ensure they had been cleaned as well as he could expect and thus was clear of any pulverized fruit. When he reached the designated spot he welcomed the moment he got to try and rest his eyes a bit more, taking a note from the already present Card’s book.
“You look like you had fun, Card,†Dom said to the other marine, observing the many stains on her armor.
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Gwathdraug
- Posts: 281
- Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:48 am
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Card let out a snort at Dom's assertion and then opened a single eye and fixed it on him with a look that said 'I'd box you about the head right now if I had the energy' while also making what was most likely derogatory commentaries upon the other marine's intelligence.
Closing her eye again and leaning further into her stealh-poncho pillow Emma breathed in deeply and then slowly blew the air back out through clenched teeth.
“The others are coming? If not just don't tell me. If someone was stupid enough to put me back in charge of something I'd rather just not know. And especially don't tell me it if you two are the only ones I'm suppose to be going on this mission with – I'd rather just stab someone and disappear in the confusion if that was the case.†Card's eyes were still closed and her body relaxed as comfortably as it could manage up against the wall as her speech geared down into a low set of mutters that mostly just seemed to re-emphasize her general wish to stab someone at the moment.
Closing her eye again and leaning further into her stealh-poncho pillow Emma breathed in deeply and then slowly blew the air back out through clenched teeth.
“The others are coming? If not just don't tell me. If someone was stupid enough to put me back in charge of something I'd rather just not know. And especially don't tell me it if you two are the only ones I'm suppose to be going on this mission with – I'd rather just stab someone and disappear in the confusion if that was the case.†Card's eyes were still closed and her body relaxed as comfortably as it could manage up against the wall as her speech geared down into a low set of mutters that mostly just seemed to re-emphasize her general wish to stab someone at the moment.
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Mr. Blackbird Lore
- Posts: 722
- Joined: Fri Dec 31, 2010 1:48 pm
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Striding fervently toward the gathering squad was another female marine. She had a pair of CSGs, one flung over her shoulder and the other clasped almost lazily in her right hand, and a helmet in her left hand. Even from a distance it was easy to identify Private Camilla Enos, if not by her gruff disposition then by the eight-inch kukri blade strapped to her right chestplate at a slant.
She didn't utter a word at her arrival, merely glanced around at those present. She nodded a greeting to the combat engineer, but otherwise gave no acknowledgement. The sergeant had yet to arrive, so now was good a time as any to snooze. It was another lesson she learned long ago: sleep every moment you get; if you need to be awake, someone will make sure you are. Camilla settled down on the dirt, leaned against one of the several hatches, and closed her eyes.
She didn't utter a word at her arrival, merely glanced around at those present. She nodded a greeting to the combat engineer, but otherwise gave no acknowledgement. The sergeant had yet to arrive, so now was good a time as any to snooze. It was another lesson she learned long ago: sleep every moment you get; if you need to be awake, someone will make sure you are. Camilla settled down on the dirt, leaned against one of the several hatches, and closed her eyes.
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
As Pepper went over all her magazines, she playfully counting aloud the number of them as she did so
Soon however, the green haired girl's eyes looked up from the mag in her hands as she worked to push a gauss round into the lips after having removed it during the function check. "Huh? Where are you going to disappear to?" she asked Emma, head tilting to the side in confusion. The young marine raised a hand up to her face and counted off on her fingers, "There's nothing out there at all except for Drathonians, human flesh eating animals, human flesh eating plants, human flesh eating bacteria, human flesh eating fungi and viruses that make you eat human flesh since they drive you all crazy," she spoke, finishing her count of human flesh eating things. "Huh. That's odd. I'm forgetting something important." Scratching her head, Pepper pondered just what it was that she was missing, when it suddenly hit her.
"Oh! And lots of Coal Fruit! That's lucky number seven!" she counted, gleefully smiling at Emma. Somehow, it all felt like a completely innocent and unintended threat.
Soon however, the green haired girl's eyes looked up from the mag in her hands as she worked to push a gauss round into the lips after having removed it during the function check. "Huh? Where are you going to disappear to?" she asked Emma, head tilting to the side in confusion. The young marine raised a hand up to her face and counted off on her fingers, "There's nothing out there at all except for Drathonians, human flesh eating animals, human flesh eating plants, human flesh eating bacteria, human flesh eating fungi and viruses that make you eat human flesh since they drive you all crazy," she spoke, finishing her count of human flesh eating things. "Huh. That's odd. I'm forgetting something important." Scratching her head, Pepper pondered just what it was that she was missing, when it suddenly hit her.
"Oh! And lots of Coal Fruit! That's lucky number seven!" she counted, gleefully smiling at Emma. Somehow, it all felt like a completely innocent and unintended threat.
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Dom settled down to relax against the wall a little ways away from Card. Much to his pleasant surprise Camilla returned from medical, and he reciprocated her nod with a smile as she sat down to relax as well. Chuckling lightly, the engineer was amused by how tired the others seemed to be, and counted his blessings that he felt well rested; although he could excuse Camilla mostly due to her being recently knocked out, and the fact that she could easily make him regret teasing her about it.
“I’d take on anything on that list, Pepper, just keep the coal fruit away,†Dom joked as he replied to Pepper before turning to Card. “Pepper’s got a point, Card. Besides, we are a good group to go on missions with. Plus! I spent my entire early life working in tunnels, this’ll be like going home for a bit.â€
“I’d take on anything on that list, Pepper, just keep the coal fruit away,†Dom joked as he replied to Pepper before turning to Card. “Pepper’s got a point, Card. Besides, we are a good group to go on missions with. Plus! I spent my entire early life working in tunnels, this’ll be like going home for a bit.â€
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Though easily congratulated and thanked for his bravery, Asher was not quickly afforded the quick solace of sleep in his own bunk. After he had been ordered to bed, he had been caught by the medical staff on base. Rumors had already went fly of his heroic deeds, but at the same time, so did tales his exposure to enemy fire and unfortunate positioning in the chaos of battle. When the fight was over, Asher still had small spines lodged in the filled cavity of his chest. Parts of his helmets visor had fragmented and blooded his face. Even more, his body plates had fractured in certain plates, from various explosions, causing damage on his body. Instead of returning to his bed in a bloody mess, Asher was drug off to surgery.
Rather, they tried to.
Much to their surprise, Asher had more than enough strength to worm his way out of the slimy fingers of suspicious 'doctors'. They managed to slow him for a few seconds with an official Medical Warrant, signed by the Chief Medical Officer herself. Though authority wasn't enough, and after chasing the limping PFC through a few halls, and smoking him out of some air ducts, they managed to stop him, by sedating him with a dart gun. One of the nurses managed to catch him before he fell dead to the ground, but not before he managed to grope in counter-assault. Reports stated that he went down grumbling that he would not 'go down without a fight'.
They kept Asher down with a few more sedatives after getting him to a bed, and spent an hour or so peeling pieces of reinforced ceramics off his skin. Yet, much more time was discussing just how Asher was still alive after the puncture to his chest. They could only credit it to the medical foam used on the exposed chest cavity, having closed up the wound after the massive spine was removed. Yet there was a lot of notable internal injury along that stabbed route. Medical Doctors spent hours carefully splicing, and applying micro-solutions within the puncture itself. When it was all said and done, though, Terran medical science conquered all, and Asher was looking better than he did before he went out on the mission. This fact was not spared on him when he finally woke up, startling some of the medical staff as he ripped out his intravenous line and began throwing things at the nurses and staff. They had almost considered calling security from his rowdiness, but he managed to get a nurse above his head, by her back and butt, threatening to throw her at any doctor that came at him; the medical staff acted on their own.
Once again, he was sedated, with more than one dart this time, a closely dangerous dose, but nothing less seemed to work anymore.
When the call came to summon the wild Surandanian from his medically-induced slumber, the Chief Medical Officer firmly refused. Asher was still a recovering patient, despite the state of his wounds. He'd need much more time on his back to allow himself to recover. There was a lot of arguing between the superior officer and head doctor, but she was adamant in her refusal. He showed her the paperwork, and she simply shook her head. He asked to see the patient, and she escorted him to his room. The soldier said he was fine, the doctor once again disagreed, and he tossed the order forms all over the place in a fit of frustration. After another bout of arguing, the both of them left Asher alone. Though, as soon as they had begun to walk away, discussing 'ramifications' angrily, there was a terrible clatter from the patient's room.
When they returned, they had found that an I.V. stand had been used to smash in a duct vent. Westwood was gone, and so were his strewn papers.
----
Asher arrived on sight, with armfuls of gear. He was dressed in a dirty hospital gown, stretched and torn. For the most part, to the rest of his squadmates who saw him arrive in this state, he looked very well physically. He took a look around at everyone present, before dumping his gear onto the floor. He had an Orc, a set of fresh Savior Armor, ammunition, a clean uniform, and a proper kit of tools for spelunking. With that all strewn about, the brawler tore off his gown, and threw it aside, making him as naked as the day he was born.
"You guys ain't got no idea tha' kinda' shit I had t'go through just to get here." He began picking around for a his uniform's pants.
Rather, they tried to.
Much to their surprise, Asher had more than enough strength to worm his way out of the slimy fingers of suspicious 'doctors'. They managed to slow him for a few seconds with an official Medical Warrant, signed by the Chief Medical Officer herself. Though authority wasn't enough, and after chasing the limping PFC through a few halls, and smoking him out of some air ducts, they managed to stop him, by sedating him with a dart gun. One of the nurses managed to catch him before he fell dead to the ground, but not before he managed to grope in counter-assault. Reports stated that he went down grumbling that he would not 'go down without a fight'.
They kept Asher down with a few more sedatives after getting him to a bed, and spent an hour or so peeling pieces of reinforced ceramics off his skin. Yet, much more time was discussing just how Asher was still alive after the puncture to his chest. They could only credit it to the medical foam used on the exposed chest cavity, having closed up the wound after the massive spine was removed. Yet there was a lot of notable internal injury along that stabbed route. Medical Doctors spent hours carefully splicing, and applying micro-solutions within the puncture itself. When it was all said and done, though, Terran medical science conquered all, and Asher was looking better than he did before he went out on the mission. This fact was not spared on him when he finally woke up, startling some of the medical staff as he ripped out his intravenous line and began throwing things at the nurses and staff. They had almost considered calling security from his rowdiness, but he managed to get a nurse above his head, by her back and butt, threatening to throw her at any doctor that came at him; the medical staff acted on their own.
Once again, he was sedated, with more than one dart this time, a closely dangerous dose, but nothing less seemed to work anymore.
When the call came to summon the wild Surandanian from his medically-induced slumber, the Chief Medical Officer firmly refused. Asher was still a recovering patient, despite the state of his wounds. He'd need much more time on his back to allow himself to recover. There was a lot of arguing between the superior officer and head doctor, but she was adamant in her refusal. He showed her the paperwork, and she simply shook her head. He asked to see the patient, and she escorted him to his room. The soldier said he was fine, the doctor once again disagreed, and he tossed the order forms all over the place in a fit of frustration. After another bout of arguing, the both of them left Asher alone. Though, as soon as they had begun to walk away, discussing 'ramifications' angrily, there was a terrible clatter from the patient's room.
When they returned, they had found that an I.V. stand had been used to smash in a duct vent. Westwood was gone, and so were his strewn papers.
----
Asher arrived on sight, with armfuls of gear. He was dressed in a dirty hospital gown, stretched and torn. For the most part, to the rest of his squadmates who saw him arrive in this state, he looked very well physically. He took a look around at everyone present, before dumping his gear onto the floor. He had an Orc, a set of fresh Savior Armor, ammunition, a clean uniform, and a proper kit of tools for spelunking. With that all strewn about, the brawler tore off his gown, and threw it aside, making him as naked as the day he was born.
"You guys ain't got no idea tha' kinda' shit I had t'go through just to get here." He began picking around for a his uniform's pants.
-
Gwathdraug
- Posts: 281
- Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:48 am
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
“Ah, apologies to yah and Pepper, Dom. I was more worried about how many of us would be showing up for this mission than who was showing up for it. Now that we got Enos with us and -†Card's eyes had still been closed as she was talking and therefore did not see Asher as he first entered the area in which the squad had been waiting.
One eye opened as the short brawler let all his gear fall to the ground in a great clatter.
“Asher.†When Card spoke the name of their Surandanian teammate it was a convenient end to her interrupted statement, a greeting to the man himself, and all together a curse for his continued existence.
Card's other eye snapped open and she straightened as quick as she could as the former Drill-Captain disbelievingly believed in what Asher was about to do. Catching her stealth-poncho as it fell from behind her head Emma balled the piece of cloth up and threw it as fast as she could right at Pepper's face.
“Mills, heads up!†Card's voice snapped out at the younger marine with all the old authority of her former rank, doing her best to guide Pepper's attention towards the visual oblivion of the flying poncho before the Surandanian could complete his task.
Then Private First Class Asher Orkin Westwood was standing before his squadmates as naked as he could possibly be.
Glaring straight at Asher's eyes Card pushed off the wall she had been resting against earlier and walked closer to the other marine. “Think you could have kept the gown on while you covered up instead of skimming down here in front of all of us Princess?â€
Snapping her mouth shut and throwing out the barrage of other insults she had brewing for Westwood Card shook her head and strode past the other marine as he stumbled about in his attempt to get dressed. “Forget it. I'm heading down, would rather not be here if the Sergeant decides to show up anytime soon.â€
Mounting one of the shaky, long ladders that would take the squad down into the tunnels proper Card vigorously climbed her way down. Her frustrating grumbling on how she hoped none of the other marines she trained had turned out to be such idiots in the field as Asher occasionally drifting back up towards the rest of the group.
Hopping off the ladder as it ended Card looked about the carved out rock cavern that the dimly lit shaft had lead to. Her eyebrows raised as she looked around the much better lit area that served as this section of the fortress's hub for the Footholder's lauded 'Tunnels'.
Besides the metal tubes that housed each of the ladders the entire area was still the natural stone of the world which had been extensively modified – the cavern itself rose to over twice her height and could have fit a good hundred or more geared out marines without being cramped for space.
Then there was the fact that the far wall was practically honey-combed with various sized holes – most ones that you could easily walk through but some of the more squeezed in ones looking like you would need to crawl a long way before things got comfortable – that were undoubtedly the locals' tunnels.
Each one had a set of carefully carved numbers set right above the entrance.
Finding her face twitching in a variety of combined annoyances from over the hours since she had last slept properly Card reached for the helmet clipped to her belt before yelled back up at the others. “Pepper, throw my poncho down here when you get the time. I think we might be waiting for a very detailed debriefing to come down from above.â€
–
As Sergeant Winters made her way from her briefing on the situation to her squad she would hear a small beep as a direct line of communication was opened to her.
“Ah. Testing? Are you there Sergeant?†A young male voice squeaked out and distorted at the end as the Signals Officer on the other side held back a yawn. “This is Lieutenant Broskin, Sergeant. I'll be seeing you and yours off until you are out of our communications range. Just letting you know that the rest of Squad 22 has gathered at the rendezvous – looks like you got a pointman already down by the tunnels in fact – and Command is wondering on your ETA.â€
One eye opened as the short brawler let all his gear fall to the ground in a great clatter.
“Asher.†When Card spoke the name of their Surandanian teammate it was a convenient end to her interrupted statement, a greeting to the man himself, and all together a curse for his continued existence.
Card's other eye snapped open and she straightened as quick as she could as the former Drill-Captain disbelievingly believed in what Asher was about to do. Catching her stealth-poncho as it fell from behind her head Emma balled the piece of cloth up and threw it as fast as she could right at Pepper's face.
“Mills, heads up!†Card's voice snapped out at the younger marine with all the old authority of her former rank, doing her best to guide Pepper's attention towards the visual oblivion of the flying poncho before the Surandanian could complete his task.
Then Private First Class Asher Orkin Westwood was standing before his squadmates as naked as he could possibly be.
Glaring straight at Asher's eyes Card pushed off the wall she had been resting against earlier and walked closer to the other marine. “Think you could have kept the gown on while you covered up instead of skimming down here in front of all of us Princess?â€
Snapping her mouth shut and throwing out the barrage of other insults she had brewing for Westwood Card shook her head and strode past the other marine as he stumbled about in his attempt to get dressed. “Forget it. I'm heading down, would rather not be here if the Sergeant decides to show up anytime soon.â€
Mounting one of the shaky, long ladders that would take the squad down into the tunnels proper Card vigorously climbed her way down. Her frustrating grumbling on how she hoped none of the other marines she trained had turned out to be such idiots in the field as Asher occasionally drifting back up towards the rest of the group.
Hopping off the ladder as it ended Card looked about the carved out rock cavern that the dimly lit shaft had lead to. Her eyebrows raised as she looked around the much better lit area that served as this section of the fortress's hub for the Footholder's lauded 'Tunnels'.
Besides the metal tubes that housed each of the ladders the entire area was still the natural stone of the world which had been extensively modified – the cavern itself rose to over twice her height and could have fit a good hundred or more geared out marines without being cramped for space.
Then there was the fact that the far wall was practically honey-combed with various sized holes – most ones that you could easily walk through but some of the more squeezed in ones looking like you would need to crawl a long way before things got comfortable – that were undoubtedly the locals' tunnels.
Each one had a set of carefully carved numbers set right above the entrance.
Finding her face twitching in a variety of combined annoyances from over the hours since she had last slept properly Card reached for the helmet clipped to her belt before yelled back up at the others. “Pepper, throw my poncho down here when you get the time. I think we might be waiting for a very detailed debriefing to come down from above.â€
–
As Sergeant Winters made her way from her briefing on the situation to her squad she would hear a small beep as a direct line of communication was opened to her.
“Ah. Testing? Are you there Sergeant?†A young male voice squeaked out and distorted at the end as the Signals Officer on the other side held back a yawn. “This is Lieutenant Broskin, Sergeant. I'll be seeing you and yours off until you are out of our communications range. Just letting you know that the rest of Squad 22 has gathered at the rendezvous – looks like you got a pointman already down by the tunnels in fact – and Command is wondering on your ETA.â€
Re: Foothold: Ch. 2, Of Jungle and Stone
Dom scowled and looked away as Asher began to demonstrate how much he cared about the concept of shame. While not a huge concern, there was a time and place for such brazen behavior; in this case, the showers. “Ever the bashful one, eh Asher?†he joked lightly after Card’s verbal barrage.
“I think Card has the right idea on this one,†Dom said to himself as he looked toward the ladder. Making his way over the engineer peered down and felt slight anxiety, then with a nod of his head he began to make his way down into the mine as well. As he descended he could feel a slight smile grow on his face, attributing it to returning to an environment that was more familiar to him.
Reaching the bottom fairly quickly, the young soldier began his own survey of the tunnel as the smile grew a little more. Looking over towards Card, Dom stood about awkwardly for a moment or two before thinking of some small talk.
“I tell ya, I am looking forward to this mission a lot more than the last one. I’m fonder of tunnels, and there is less chance of getting trampled by a Hammerbeast down here,†Dom spoke up, but as he trailed off a bit he realized that that was not very good small talk.
“I think Card has the right idea on this one,†Dom said to himself as he looked toward the ladder. Making his way over the engineer peered down and felt slight anxiety, then with a nod of his head he began to make his way down into the mine as well. As he descended he could feel a slight smile grow on his face, attributing it to returning to an environment that was more familiar to him.
Reaching the bottom fairly quickly, the young soldier began his own survey of the tunnel as the smile grew a little more. Looking over towards Card, Dom stood about awkwardly for a moment or two before thinking of some small talk.
“I tell ya, I am looking forward to this mission a lot more than the last one. I’m fonder of tunnels, and there is less chance of getting trampled by a Hammerbeast down here,†Dom spoke up, but as he trailed off a bit he realized that that was not very good small talk.