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The Patrol - Part II
Posted By: DanH<dishnish2@hotmail.com>
Date: 18 July 2004, 3:07 AM


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      Back at the Company CP, marines were running left and right, trying to hold the perimeter. The Covenant were attacking on all sides. Amidst all of the confusion, one marine was standing there at attention. He was Bandos; the marine Donnellson had left at the camp with the wounded Krinjeck. Company F's commander walked over to the man and glared at him.
      "WHAT'RE YOU DOING MARINE?!" Screamed the captain.
      "Waiting for you, sir. I need to get back to my unit. They're stuck out in the woods in the middle of this. I wanted to ask you to let me take a warthog, any extra ammo, and two men with me to help 'em out."
      "Well son, I'd like to help you and your platoon out, but I simply can't spare the manpower." He looked at the Marine. He was staring at the Captain intently, completely serious. "Tell ya what. If you can get two men to volunteer, and you can scrounge ammo, and you can manage to commandeer a Warthog, then you can go." He figured that this marine could never convince two marines to leave the camp and go on a suicide mission; he turned and began to stride away.
      "Sir." Said Bandos. "I have already found two men willing to go, a warthog, and plenty of spare ammo. Can I go sir?"
      The Captain spun around. "Well. Then I guess you can go." Said the bewildered captain. Not only had this marine done what he asked, he did it before he asked him. "I gotta remember to promote that boy when he gets back," he thought to himself as he walked away. "If he gets back."

      Bandos and the other two marines, Locke and Alsheimer of Company A, climbed into their warthog and placed spare ammo anywhere there was room.
      "We ready?" said Bandos.
      "You bet!" yelled the two marines.
      The warthog slammed into gear, and tore out of the camp. Immediately they came under fire, and both of the new marines began firing to the left and right. Bandos pulled out his pistol, and began driving with one hand and shooting with the other.

      Back in the woods, 3rd platoon was having difficulty holding their position. Some of the men were down to their last mags, and some took their side arms from their holsters and began firing. Suddenly Donnellson heard a familiar voice come over the radio.
      "Sergeant Donnellson, Sgt. Donnellson come in over."
      "This is Donnellson. Is that you Bandos?"
      "Yes sir, good to hear you're still alive. Listen. We're headed towards your position in a warthog; we got spare ammo and supplies. ETA about 3 minutes."
      "Good to hear Bandos, we need some help here." Wait a minute, he thought. We? "Who's with you Bandos?"
      "I got two volunteers from Alpha Company sir, Locke and Alsheimer."
      "Well, good to hear, we would use a few extra fighters".

      As he said those words, his radio was hit by a bolt of plasma and melted immediately. "Oh crap." He thought. "Oh well, we'll at least have the warthog's radio."
      "Listen up guys, Bandos and two other marines are headed here right now in a warthog. They got supplies, ammo, but best of all, them coming means that the CP is still up. We gotta keep fighting."
      He gazed over his bleeding and miserable marines. He knew they couldn't keep fighting for very long, especially without any hope. He suddenly regretted telling them that command couldn't give them reinforcements. If he hadn't told them that, he could have at least kept a lie going that they might be saved. Now he had no chance. They had no chance.

      Back in the warthog, though, the three marines were having plenty of trouble of their own. Bandos was discovering how difficult it was to reload a pistol and still drive straight, Locke was discovering how difficult it was to fire an assault rifle from the passenger seat of a warthog, and Alsheimer was discovering how easy it was to keep a solid stream of fire going from his machine gun. Dodging the streams of plasma flying past him constantly was a different story. He had to jump, duck, and contort his body every which way to avoid them. Finally they pulled into the circle of tree and rock 3rd platoon had cover inside of. Locke jumped out of the passenger seat, and Bandos jumped out of the driver seat. Alsheimer sort of slid out of the gunner seat. All of the bumps they had hit made his legs a little woozy, so he just slid up to a rock and sat down.
      "Good to have you back Bandos; I thought you were just going to stay back at CP."
      "Well, you know me sir, I like to stay in the thick of it." Replied Bandos. Just as he said that, a spray of plasma flew over the platoon's heads.

      "Find some cover, find some cover!" Yelled Donnellson. "Everybody grab a few extra mags. We're holding this spot!"





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