konflakes
Well-Known Member
Here's another story by me. If its retarded, just move on and don't mind me, I'll be making this up as I go along.
A silent night, dark skies and no wind. Ominous, some might call it. But to Conrad, it was just another night in the Marines. Having spent ten years in the army, slowly working his way up to a mere Sergeant, he had spent not a few nights thinking back on his decision to enlist, regret filling his heart. But he was a soldier. He pushed these thoughts away and with the focus that had earned him the trust of his superiors, he fought on.
Twelve years ago, ships belonging to an alien race, that came to be known as Merths, appeared in the Earth's atmosphere, declaring war on humanity. There was no warning, no time to evacuate. The human homeworld of Earth was decimated within hours. The humans had managed to colonize many planets over the last three hundred years.
And now, the Merths attack Silthus, a colony of metal ore mining on the planet Keldanis. The enemy was many, the Marines few. There were about ten thousand marines on Keldanis, but also an estimated two hundred thousand Merths had landed on the surface of the planet. Uncertainty and fear could almost be smelled in the air.
Turning to Captain Harris, Conrad asked, "How long do you think before they attack?"
"Not long. They landed almost three hours ago.", replied Captain Harris.
Squinting, Conrad concentrated on the lights in the distance to the west. "Lights have been getting brighter and brighter", Conrad observed.
"Hold fast. We'll survive. The outcome of any war is ten percent luck, twenty percent skill, fifteen percent concentrated power of will. Five percent pleasure, fifty percent pain and a hundred percent reason to remember the game.", Captain Harris replied.
And eventually, the night wore off and the sun rose again. A new day, bringing the Merths that much closer to the colony.
Suddenly, explosions rocked the ground and the earth began to shift beneath them.
"Tunnellers!", yelled a look-out guard.
Shouldering his A-15 sniper rifle, Conrad took his position at the walls. His palms were sweaty. Knees weak, arms are heavy. There's vomit on his armor already. Dried spaghetti. He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready to drop bombs, but he keeps on forgetting what he planned out, the whole army goes so loud. He opens his mouth but the screams won't come out. He's choking how, everybody's choking now.
Panic broke out amongst the Marines. Everyone was pushing each other to get further away from the walls.
"Hold your ground! If you run now, they won't kill you, I will." shouted Captain Harris from the battlements.
Slowly, the crowd slowed. Somewhere, someone cried out "For Earth! Death to the Merths!", and everyone began taking up the chant. Morale raised again and men returned to their positions with military precision and speed.
Far below the battlements, on the grround, a gate opened and Heavily Armored men with machine guns and rocket launchers began walking out.
"Convicts. Our first line of defence cos' no one 'ere cares 'bout em'." claimed a Corporal beside Conrad.
"I know. I heard their commander is a Lietenant Cash. Mass murderer from the planet Smooth. They've described some of his crimes too. There was this one time, when he came into a girl's apartment. He left the bloodstains on the carpet. She ran underneath the table. He could see she was unable, so she ran into the bedroom. She was struck down, it was her doom. Her name was Annie", another Corporal replied the first, recounting a story he heard.
"Seems she was struck by a Smooth criminal eh?", replied the first Corporal.
"Eyes forward men. Save the stories for later.", reprimanded Conrad.
"Sir, yes sir!"
Barely 5 minutes later, the tunnelers broke the ground about a mile away from the walls. Massive machines with powerful drills. A large hatch opened and the Merths poured forth.
"Holy shit... We have to fight THAT?"
"Yes, and we will win.", Conrad remarked calmly, already going into the "Zone" of a sniper, as he aimed down his scope and began regulating his breath.
As the Merths clashed into the front lines of the Marines half a mile from the walls, the command went up.
"Snipers! Fire at will!"
And so Conrad fired. Accounting for wind speed, elevation and humidity, he settled the crosshair over an unsuspecting Merth and fire. Headshot. Ejecting, his spent bullet, Conrad already had another target in his sights. As soon as he pushed the next bullet into position he fired. Firing like a well-oiled machine, he took down his targets rapidly.
Within hours, the Merths started retreating back into the tunnellers. The surviving men in the front line began pushing forward, firing on the Merths as the fled. Eventually, they reached the vicinity of the tunneller and began taking up defensive positions around them.
A cheer went out amongst the men as fists were raised in victory.
"This is only the beginning men. Don't let your guards down.", ordered Captain Harris.
"Yeah but at least we bought ourselves some time now!", cried a happy Private.
"All I know, time is a valuable thing. Watch it fly by as the pendulum swings. Watch it count down to the end of the day, the clock ticks life away.", Conrad solemnly recited.
To be continued...
A silent night, dark skies and no wind. Ominous, some might call it. But to Conrad, it was just another night in the Marines. Having spent ten years in the army, slowly working his way up to a mere Sergeant, he had spent not a few nights thinking back on his decision to enlist, regret filling his heart. But he was a soldier. He pushed these thoughts away and with the focus that had earned him the trust of his superiors, he fought on.
Twelve years ago, ships belonging to an alien race, that came to be known as Merths, appeared in the Earth's atmosphere, declaring war on humanity. There was no warning, no time to evacuate. The human homeworld of Earth was decimated within hours. The humans had managed to colonize many planets over the last three hundred years.
And now, the Merths attack Silthus, a colony of metal ore mining on the planet Keldanis. The enemy was many, the Marines few. There were about ten thousand marines on Keldanis, but also an estimated two hundred thousand Merths had landed on the surface of the planet. Uncertainty and fear could almost be smelled in the air.
Turning to Captain Harris, Conrad asked, "How long do you think before they attack?"
"Not long. They landed almost three hours ago.", replied Captain Harris.
Squinting, Conrad concentrated on the lights in the distance to the west. "Lights have been getting brighter and brighter", Conrad observed.
"Hold fast. We'll survive. The outcome of any war is ten percent luck, twenty percent skill, fifteen percent concentrated power of will. Five percent pleasure, fifty percent pain and a hundred percent reason to remember the game.", Captain Harris replied.
And eventually, the night wore off and the sun rose again. A new day, bringing the Merths that much closer to the colony.
Suddenly, explosions rocked the ground and the earth began to shift beneath them.
"Tunnellers!", yelled a look-out guard.
Shouldering his A-15 sniper rifle, Conrad took his position at the walls. His palms were sweaty. Knees weak, arms are heavy. There's vomit on his armor already. Dried spaghetti. He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready to drop bombs, but he keeps on forgetting what he planned out, the whole army goes so loud. He opens his mouth but the screams won't come out. He's choking how, everybody's choking now.
Panic broke out amongst the Marines. Everyone was pushing each other to get further away from the walls.
"Hold your ground! If you run now, they won't kill you, I will." shouted Captain Harris from the battlements.
Slowly, the crowd slowed. Somewhere, someone cried out "For Earth! Death to the Merths!", and everyone began taking up the chant. Morale raised again and men returned to their positions with military precision and speed.
Far below the battlements, on the grround, a gate opened and Heavily Armored men with machine guns and rocket launchers began walking out.
"Convicts. Our first line of defence cos' no one 'ere cares 'bout em'." claimed a Corporal beside Conrad.
"I know. I heard their commander is a Lietenant Cash. Mass murderer from the planet Smooth. They've described some of his crimes too. There was this one time, when he came into a girl's apartment. He left the bloodstains on the carpet. She ran underneath the table. He could see she was unable, so she ran into the bedroom. She was struck down, it was her doom. Her name was Annie", another Corporal replied the first, recounting a story he heard.
"Seems she was struck by a Smooth criminal eh?", replied the first Corporal.
"Eyes forward men. Save the stories for later.", reprimanded Conrad.
"Sir, yes sir!"
Barely 5 minutes later, the tunnelers broke the ground about a mile away from the walls. Massive machines with powerful drills. A large hatch opened and the Merths poured forth.
"Holy shit... We have to fight THAT?"
"Yes, and we will win.", Conrad remarked calmly, already going into the "Zone" of a sniper, as he aimed down his scope and began regulating his breath.
As the Merths clashed into the front lines of the Marines half a mile from the walls, the command went up.
"Snipers! Fire at will!"
And so Conrad fired. Accounting for wind speed, elevation and humidity, he settled the crosshair over an unsuspecting Merth and fire. Headshot. Ejecting, his spent bullet, Conrad already had another target in his sights. As soon as he pushed the next bullet into position he fired. Firing like a well-oiled machine, he took down his targets rapidly.
Within hours, the Merths started retreating back into the tunnellers. The surviving men in the front line began pushing forward, firing on the Merths as the fled. Eventually, they reached the vicinity of the tunneller and began taking up defensive positions around them.
A cheer went out amongst the men as fists were raised in victory.
"This is only the beginning men. Don't let your guards down.", ordered Captain Harris.
"Yeah but at least we bought ourselves some time now!", cried a happy Private.
"All I know, time is a valuable thing. Watch it fly by as the pendulum swings. Watch it count down to the end of the day, the clock ticks life away.", Conrad solemnly recited.
To be continued...
