Ruination

Chapter 21: "We'll fight together, always"

RYDER POV:

Echo got off of the radio with Ensis, slamming it down and looking around at the people occupying the cave as she began preparing to get Madi and head to the wasteland when Murphy spoke up. "What about air support then?" Murphy asked. "Transport ship's got missiles, right If we can get on board and take them—" he was quickly cut off, looking up at Echo, my frown deepened as I looked between them.

"No way." Raven called out. "The one thing McCreary doesn't have is a pilot and you want to walk one right through the front door?" Raven scoldingly asked.

"Raven's right. It's too risky." Echo stated.

"I agree with Murphy." Shaw spoke up. "If we can't get them through the gorge this thing is over, and they die in the wasteland." He pointed out.

"Doesn't make much of a difference to me but bombing the gorge will probably result in more casualties, some of which are your friends." I pointed out, leaning back against the damp cave wall.

"I trust Ensis has a plan for that," Echo said, looking over to Shaw, her eyes narrowed at him, not trusting the guy much as all. No one could really blame her though, other than Raven, I doubted many of them trusted him.

"You trust this guy? Last we saw of him he looked like he was dying." Shaw scathingly pointed out.

"Appearances often shouldn't equate to intelligence." I pointed out, glancing over to Shaw, watching his lips curl into a scowl. "In most cases." I muttered, my dark eyes flicking over him.

"He's right," Echo sighed, glancing at me. "Murphy and Emori, stay here and get that canon working." She ordered them.

"Sorry. What are you talking about?" Murphy asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"We're going to the valley, Ensis wants Madi there, we'll get her there. Me and Raven are going to get Madi and then we're leaving for the Wasteland tonight." Echo explained to Murphy before she glanced at me. "Scout kill whoever you can, if there are people alive in the gorge, we need to know how many and if you recognise any of them. Got it?" Echo asked me and I stood up, sending a mock salute in her direction.

"I'm on it." I chucked, standing up and grabbing my bag, walking out of the cave, in the dead of night, I was shrouded in darkness, protected from prying eyes. I marched up the hill and to the gorge, I remained in the tree line, peering through my thermal scope, I frowned, seeing movement in the gorge, everyone who got up was shot, and I saw people running when the light was off of them and jumping to the ground when the light came back. I looked past them and closer to the light seeing a girl laying on the ground behind rocks, shifting, curled up against a lifeless body.

"What have you got for us?" Echo asked.

"There are around a dozen people left alive, most are heavily wounded from what I can tell. I can't make out who they are." I informed Echo.

"Stay there, kill as many as you can. Over and out." Echo hung up and I sighed, standing up and placing the rifle down and grabbing a knife and a handgun. I reached into the bag, putting on a bullet proof vest and running along the tree line, I'd kill as many as I could, but there was no way I was going near the pill box. With the sound wave canon and machine guns, I didn't want to push my luck.

BELLATRIX POV:

Laying on my back, my eyes were drawn up to the starry sky and a smile spread to my lips as I was reminded of when I'd first landed on the ground. The first night I had on earth was so beautiful, there was so much we all took for granted, and a sight like this was one of them. Being up in the sky was nothing compared to laying on the ground at night and gazing up at the starry sky. Even if I knew stars were huge celestial bodies made of hydrogen and helium that produced light and heat from the nuclear forges inside their core, they would always be beautiful. It was something greater than me.