Halo: Gauntlet

Chapter 19: 4 years ago

Lukas groaned from the van's passenger seat. Lee was driving now, hands tight around the wheel as he frequently glanced at his friend. The convoy had been driving at full speed for barely an hour since leaving the city. They had exited the cliffs and were cruising along Reach's vast plains. The civilians had been relatively quiet, but now and then Lee could hear crying from behind. He looked over at Lukas again. He had a bandage wrapped around his neck and rubbed the patches of gauze over his stomach. Lee had helped snap off the protruding spikes and wrap up the wounds, much to Lukas's chagrin. 

"You okay?" Lee asked. Lukas turned and chuckled weakly. 

"I'm great. Want me to drive?" he asked. Lee shook his head. 

"It was a pain in the ass to switch seats once. Hell no." Lee pressed his lips together and loosened his grip on the wheel. "That DMR is pretty kick-ass, I gotta say."

"Yeah, maybe you can get one when we're all done with this. I don't know how you've gone this long with that SMG. The thing is a bullet hose."

"That's the appeal, man. You just don't get it." There was a moment of silence in the van. 

"You don't have any more ammo, do you?"

"No. No, I don't."

Lukas grinned. "And there it is." He slowly began to chuckle, "you're so full of shit," he muttered between laughs. Lee apprehensively joined in, laughing a little along with him. The moment was quickly cut off when Lukas winced in pain and clutched his stomach. He quietly groaned in pain but tried to hide it with another weak laugh. Lee turned his attention back to the road, his face falling into a somber expression. His helmet hid it, but inside, he was worried deeply. He knew the extent of Lukas' injuries. He was just hoping they would make it in time. 

***

Klace looked back and saw the two younger Spartans conversing behind them, shaking his head as he faced forward. 

"He's lucky to be breathing," he muttered. 

"I heard that Kurt gave the Gammas a real cocktail of stuff. Mutagens, anti-psychotics, et cetera. Made them resistant to pain or whatever," explained Kuzo. "Looks like it worked." Klace sighed.

"That doesn't stop them from bleeding to death. A half-used trauma kit can't do much with an injury like that." He looked in the rearview mirror. "He'll be lucky if he lasts the next hour." Even now, he could see a bright red stain spread across the fresh bandages as Lukas took labored breaths. "What about you?"

"Hm? Oh," Kuzo sighed. "I'm tired. It's been a long night. I just want to get these people to safety. Take a long break, you know?" His eyes went to the rearview mirror, looking carefully at Lee. He noted the small actions, like how he always seemed to look farther ahead than he needed to, yet frequently minded the small things around him, like a loose bullet casing bouncing around the cab. "I like him."

"Lee? Yeah, he's nice. Smart. I feel bad for him though." Klace clenched his fist. "He should be in training. Not- " he paused, trying to find the words, "not losing one of his friends."