𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐨

the truce. ( 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 )

it was a calm evening in glacis, though for the past few days, that usual howling of the wind has let up, bringing forth a calm snowing landscape. what would've been an insuffrrable cold, it seemed more and more bearable, just like the day. things have been rather quiet lately, which did seem like a good kind of problem. though the rangers have that slight feeling of dread that the free legion is onto something.

we now have a look over outpost anders, which was the northernmost ranger base placed on the border between friendly and enemy territory, also acting as a checkpoint with a view towards the deadly freezing ocean water below, which was widely considered impassable. during the holidays, the ranger bases, including the citadel were run by skeleton crews. this outpost was no exception. the rangers posted there began to relax a little more, sharing anecdotes with one another and photos with their families. not much work was getting done, since there was already not much work to do, besides giving occasional SITREPs once every couple of hours.

that chatter was then brought to an end as one of their friends posted at the watchtower spotted a duo of legion soldiers heading towards the checkpoint on snowmobiles, though they weren't going top speed and headlights were off. the watcher called out towards the commander of the outpost on the radio. "sergeant, this is overwatch! we got two legion snowmobiles approaching from the south! they look to be unarmed. please advise, over." the overwatch called out.

the sergeant, who was inside the outpost, looked confused about what the lookout just said, before quietly motioning towards three of the nearby soldiers to come with him outside while keeping his radio close to him. the three soldiers scrambled to get their weapons and get in gear before getting ready to head outside in the cold. "overwatch, say again last. you said there are unarmed legionnaires approaching from the south? over." the sergeant inquired.

"affirmative! they're not moving at top speed either. have these guys lost their way or what? crap, what if they're suicide bombers?" the overwatch uttered out, her voice beginning to shake a little as she began to think of bad scenarios that might come after this.

hearing this, the sergeant let out a small sigh before going back on the radio, as him and the soldiers that were assigned to come with him had their sights trained on the incoming vehicles. "roger, overwatch. i know the legion. they might be crazy, but not insane enough to suicide bomb people. for now, keep your weapons tight. if they try something, don't hesitate to shoot. how copy? over."

"wilco, sergeant. overwatch out." the lookout ended the conversation, as she kept her sights trained on the incoming legionnaires. the soldiers outside were standing in the middle of the road, their weapons at the ready as the sergeant raided his hand, motioning the snowmobiles to stop where they were, and surprisingly enough, they complied and stopped their vehicles at about twenty meters from the ranger formation, before slowly stepping out with their hands up, unprompted.

"okay, fellas. that's close enough. tell me, what is your business here? do you guys have a death wish or you wanna surrender or something?" the sergeant inquired them, even laughing a little as he lowered his rifled a little bit more, assessing the situation and feeling there wasn't anything super concerning about them.

"well... we were trying to get some of the wine for ourselves, ideally without being seen, but your friend already saw us. i saw a supply truck a few days ago, and since the holidays were coming, we, uh... had to do some... procurement." the legionnaire explained himself, trying to word it nicely. the sergeant stood silent, as he looked back at his men for a second, before back at the soldiers, his gaze hardening a little, trying to scope out any hidden intentions and weapons these people might have, but it turned up nothing for him, so he let out a quiet hum before signaling his soldiers to stand down, who seemed to be sighing in relief that they didn't have to do this, so they put their weapons away.

"you guys could've just asked. no need to sneak and steal things just to enjoy this holiday. come on in. we've got plenty more than just wine. besides, it's better than standing outside in this cursed icebox." the outpost acting commander stated, as a small smile appeared on his face, before heading back inside, followed by some of the other soldiers, who also walked back inside, taking off their helmets as well. though, before heading inside, the sergeant went back on the radio. "all units, stand down. i repeat, stand down. as you were. pearce out."

as the last soldier and the legionnaire were about to enter, the soldier extended a hand towards the legionnaire. "name's charlie... eta company, second platoon." he uttered out, before the rebel returned the gesture by shaking his hand with a smile. "matt. first rear echelon unit. i must say, that was the most action i've seen since i got here!" he stated with a small laugh, with the soldier chuckling along with him.

"that right? still can't be that boring. we're literally supposed to stand guard in this place for days on end, without anything happening. this pretty much became a second home for me. so i'm stuck here while some of the guys got lucky when their names were pulled." the ranger uttered out before heading inside, leading the way. "even a lot of my guys got to see their families back home. i was among the unlucky few who had to stay behind." the legionnaire commented before following the latter inside. once inside, the door closed, as the cold began to recede as the two legionnaires took off their coats and placed them on the hangers when given indication by some of the rangers, who didn't mind their presence at all, as they were busy playing board games and overall having a great laugh.

"you two look nervous. c'mon, ease up! help yourselves to some wine! it's more than enough for everyone here!" one of the rangers uttered out as she showed the two legion members the crates of wine. even though the weather was calm, just leaving bottles outside for a few minutes is just enough to serve them as cold.

with that, for the first time in what seemed to be forever, both friend and foe sat down at the same table, and enjoyed each other's company. only during holidays like these, can both sides put aside their differences and join together as people. whether their ideals or the color of their uniforms differed... everyone came from the same place. outpost anders was the first that truly embraced this truce, followed by many others. no more backstabbing, no more killing, no more war. almost nobody wanted to fight, almost everyone here wanted to go home to see their families.

after that encounter in outpost anders, both legion and rangers began to know each other. they shared photos of their loved ones, shared stories and other humorous annecdotes of their friends, and just chat with one another alongside fun activities. sergeant pearce never reported this encounter to command to prevent disciplinary action, but in reality, it wasn't a big deal to begin with. the two legionnaires spent the evening with the rangers and event went outside for a snowball fight for a little while. but as dawn was beginning to break, they knew they had to go. with a heavy heart, they exchanged parting gifts, a truly emotional moment. not only that, the rangers even let the legionnaires with some crates of wine to take with them back to base.

tomorrow was another day, it was a fleeting moment, but it was an unforgettable one. if it wasn't for this dammed war, then everyone involved would've been good friends. during peace, the sons bury their fathers, buy in war, the fathers bury their sons.

"The ones who call the shots won't be among the dead and lame.
And on each end of the rifle, we are all the same."
-John McCutcheon