I was in love.
A million light years from a Bane occupied earth on a planet I never even knew existed until two years ago but yeah it was the real thing.
I saw her come into the room and make her way down the reception line but when she turned to survey the room and our eyes met I knew. I could have walked over hot coals and never known it I was so absorbed as I approached her. Her mouth made an ever so slight smile as she shyly turned her head down and away from my uncertain gawk. I reached out my hand and asked her to dance to which she replied in the affirmative.
As we joined the other couples on the dance floor our bodies seemed to glide effortlessly as if we’d been dancing together for years. Our fingers entwined and she seemed to melt into me and we moved across the floor almost as one being. We danced on unaware of the room full of couples and the drinking and laughter caught up in each other’s eyes. The tempo may have changed but our dance did not as we swayed through our own separate world.
What seemed like minuets past until a gruff Sargent Major clasped down on my arm and announced “Closin' time Romeo. You and the Misses go find ya a cot.”
I grasped her arm and we slowly strolled out of the hall. She told me where she was staying and I walked her to the Corman building at the other end of the base.
She turned to face me as we stopped walking putting both hands on my face guiding it forward until our lips met in a soft moist kiss. She made a soft sound and once again her body melted to mine her arms going around my neck and the kiss becoming more passionate.
I gotta admit I still can’t believe that after a few minuets I put my hands on her hips and gently pushed her away to arms length. “Oh darlin ” I exhaled with a whoosh of breath, “You are something else but old Hawk has an early call on the flightline.” To this she locked her fingers behind my neck and looking up at me smiled and promised that we’d get back together the day after tomorrow “IF” I knew what was good for me.
With that she gave me another kiss and scampered into the building leaving me there to ponder on just what the hell had happened tonight. I turned toward the barracks and scratched my head trying to make sense of the whole thing. Damn, I forgot to ask her name!
The one sure thing, for the first time in my life I was in love.
At Captain Thompson’s 05:30 briefing my sniper team was advised that an informant was meeting with a Bane Intelligence Officer to the south of Lake Elinor. Our mission was to eliminate that informant before any valuable intelligence could be given to the Bane.
The Hedgehog dropped us a few clicks from the meeting site. It wasn’t long before my spotter and I were belly down and scanning the area for the principals of the covert meeting.
I rolled over on my back to make some adjustments to my rifle’s scope for the strong cross wind blowing through the area. “Bingo,” my spotter announced, “got a boggy at eleven o’clock moving fast.”
I rolled back into the prone firing position bringing my torqueshell rifle to bear on the sector indicated by my spotter. Sure enough, through my scope I could see a small hooded figure that hurried along the ground making sure to use the terrain features to mask its movements. I followed the target until it reached the point we were told the meeting would take place.
No mistake now, this is the informant and we had them before the Bane could get anything out of them. My finger tightened on the trigger and then the target threw back its hood and I froze.
There she was, my love, in my crosshairs; oh my God what am I going to do? My mind raced, heart pounded and sweat poured down my face. I couldn’t believe this was happening.
“Take the shot boss” my spotter prodded, “ain’t getting any better than this.”
Two years of constant combat experience took over. She was the target not a person; not the woman I held in my arms and danced the night away just hours before. She wasn’t the woman I loved so deeply that it hurt she was just a target to be eliminated and by doing so save many AFS and civilian lives.
My finger squeezed the trigger and the rifle punched back into my shoulder as her head exploded into a spray of blood, brains and bone. She was dead before her body hit the ground.
I continued to stare through my riflescope at the crumpled form until my spotter yanked on my arm, “Time to boogie boss” as he hauled me upright and dragged me away toward our extraction site.
So here I sit slumped down against my footlocker with my guts ripped out and my heart bleeding. Damn why did it have to be her? I only just met her how can I be feeling like this?
A patrol found her body a few days later and the Corman community gave her a decent burial. Questions were asked as to why she had been that far away from the safety of the AFS lines and the Bane were blamed for her death.
I now have the same dream every night. I’m dancing with a woman I’m deeply in love with and when the music stops her head explodes showering me with blood. I wake up screaming with my heart pounding and soaked in sweat. Then I remember how much I loved her and the real pain begins again.
Author: E.F. (Gunner) Smith
AKA Magestar
Orion server
Images by E.F. (Gunner) Smith