Riftwalkers (Draft 1)

An (Un)pleasant Surprise

Sam wanders the terrain quietly. The land is uneven, causing a lot of blind spots, and he finds that he hasn't seen any comrades since they set out. He can hear them though. Thundering footsteps, human screams, gunshots, explosions, the works. He continues his walk quietly, sticking to the outskirts. He's sure the squad will be fine without his help, so he tries to stay away whenever he's able to. He eventually comes across a mercenary, but he's tucked himself away in a rock formation. He looks injured, a little tossed around maybe, and he whimpers at the sight of Sam. Sam wonders how such a frail looking guy was supposed to do anything here.

"You should leave while you still can." He says plainly. The mercenary stares incredulously. Sam continues. "I mean it. That little pistol isn't gonna do much against any of us. You probably weigh 100 pounds soaking wet. Instead of getting yourself killed out here, go home and find a different way to protest us. You won't make a difference if you're a stain on some rocks." He crosses his arms, watching the mercenary slowly exit the formation and drop the gun. Sam doesn't recognize the emotion on the man's face, but the man is crying heavily.

"Thank... you..." The man whispers before running off. He used to think they were cowards. The humans who came to fight but begged for their lives. Sam always believed they must be cowards if they'd come looking for a fight without preparing for the reality of it. That view changed after enough of these missions. These people want their world back. The soldiers are monsters of their own, never mind the ongoing war with the demons. These people will put their lives on the line for their beliefs despite being scared of death, and he learned there's a lot of bravery even in that. A bright red light catches his attention, and he recognizes the flare right away. The battle is over. He wonders how many mercenaries got away while he jogs towards the rest of his squad. As he approaches his mostly unscathed crew, B-03 looks towards the field and shouts something Sam can't hear, but he turns around to look.

Next thing he knows, he's on the ground. His ears are ringing, and he's lying face up. It's hot. When he sits up, he smells smoke and gunpowder, and when his ears stop ringing he becomes aware of the sound of engines. He whips around, making his head spin, but catches the sight of the plane taking off. Without him. He goes to stand, but in an instant white splotches crawl across his vision, and the last thing he hears before passing out is quickly approaching footsteps.

...

...

...

"... Sam!"

His eyes shoot open, and he sits up. The room around him is dim, but not overly dark. A lamp is lit on the table next to him. He's sitting on a bed with beautiful silk sheets, and the room is nicely furnished. Sam blinks a few times. He rubs his face and looks around again. The room is aesthetically decorated with red and black furniture and decor, and looks to be owned by someone with a lot of money. Dumbfounded, Sam just sits quietly on the bed and hardly moves. The sounds of water running elsewhere in the house briefly catch his notice, but the events that just took place fill his head instead.

They left him there for dead. His whole squad was standing at the edge of that field and not a single one of them came to grab him before they left. What did he expect? Why would they go get him? They were probably happy to have an excuse to be rid of him. Sam rationalizes that a leftover mercenary must have set off a bomb nearby as he had been crossing the field. Even artificially made soldiers aren't immune to explosions. He double checks himself, very few injuries at least, but a pounding headache. He clenches his teeth and plops back down on the bed. The pillow sinks gently under his head, cradling him. He wonders whose house this is, and how such a soft bed could ever exist. After a time the door to the room clicks open, and Sam tentatively sits back up. He needs to see who took care of him. When he catches sight of the man, his whole body shudders, and he can feel his blood run cold.