Call of Duty Ghosts: The Aftermath

Chapter 18

MERRICK

I pace back and forth, rubbing my face with my hands, letting out a deep, exasperated sigh. Turning towards Slate, I shake my head.

"I can't just sit around. We need to end this." I say, and Cody, Match, Spike, Gavin and Slate all raise their head.

Cody crosses his arms.

"Wait, you mean to kill him? I thought you were trying to keep Hesh alive." He says nonchalantly.

My eyes widen, and I groan.

"NO! Not HESH, you dumbass!! RORKE!" I shout irritably, and Cody nods in realization.

"Oh."

I rub my face with my hands again as Slate leans against the counter.

"And just what is your plan? We're not exactly in the best of situations here if you haven't noticed." He says plainly, and I roll my eyes.

"No, really, Slate? I hadn't fucking noticed." I retort harshly.

Gavin sighs, shrugging.

"I dunno. I kinda agree with Merrick. This has to end. If we get rid of Rorke, then we can focus on helping Hesh without worrying about that dick coming after us." He says, and Spike nods.

"I second that."

Match stands up from the couch.

"Same."

My eyes sweep to Cody and Slate, who look at each other with a heavy sigh.

Slate reluctantly nods.

"Okay, how are we going to do this?" 

I stop, then realize I hadn't planned that far ahead.

Slate rolls his eyes.

"You don't have a plan, do you?" He asks critically, and I frown, glaring at him.

"Shut it, Slate. We just need to think." 

Spike sighs and looks over at me.

"Thomas, if you really want to do this, then think up something fast. We can't just keep up this act with Hesh." He says, and I close my eyes, falling back against the wall, heaving a heavy sigh.

"Maybe we can help Hesh by finding Rorke."

My eyes open, and I glance over to Gavin with my eyebrow raised.

"What do you mean?" 

He lifts his shoulders in a shrug.

"I mean that maybe Rorke can tell us exactly what he did to Hesh and that in turn can help us help him." He suggests.

Cody frowns and crosses his arms.

"That's just a theory, though. It could be fruitless. What if Hesh is just too far gone. Or Rorke won't talk. My money's on the latter. But even if Rorke did tell us, what if what he did was irreversible?" He counters, and I groan.

"Well, we need to decide whether or not we're going to do this. Maybe only some of us should go." I say, lifting my head to sweep the room. The Ghosts all exchange a glance, then Spike steps forward.

"I'll go. I've got a score to settle with the Federation." He grits and Match stands up.

"I'm in. Rorke took so much from the Ghosts, and now with what he did to Hesh, I can't just let that bastard live." I nod at him, then look around the room. Slate sighs and stands up.

"What the hell. It's not like there's anything I'd be able to do here. Plus, it's up to me to keep your asses safe." He says with a smirk.

Cody and Gavin meet my eyes.