A Bit Chilly (Arby, Goody & Fac Closed RP)

[Arbiter124]

Hunter J. Knight

PFC; ODSTs

"No way." Hunter's words were barely even audible from the cold. His armor helped him far more than the marines, and he had been out here for much less time than the group. Still, the cold had clasped him. It seemed impossible to move, nevermind speak. For that reason, there was little conversation in the half an our they'd been marching. He still didn't know any of their names.

Maybe now they could rest.

They'd opened up onto a clearing, what looked like an open field that had long since been destroyed by this planet's winter and made into a frozen tundra. A few hundred yards away from them Hunter was able to make out what looked like a building. A barn.

They had a chance after all.

Clay and Hunter stood side by side in the exit to the forest, both of them leaning on adjacent trees. Hunter's scarf blew in the wind, and his entire set of ODST armor was tinted white. He constantly brushed snow from his visor.

"Yo!" The ODST called back to the group, who hadn't quite reached the destination yet, "Good news, boys!"

Collin walked up to him, tightly gripping his battle rifle. It looked like it was physically molded to his gloves at this point. He was trying to hide his shivering, but it was obvious he was struggling as much as the rest.

"What're you... Oh. Yes."

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Nice

"Woah. N-nice..." Samson began as he squinted at the field ahead of him. The barn like structure was a fair sum of yards away, but even in the distance it looked like a glimmer of hope. His feet continued to trudge in the snow, but he was weighed down more so by Cain, who he was helping limp along the footprint trail. The ODSTs ahead of him admired it for a few seconds before the team continued on their journey.

"Rest." Cain muttered. Sam nodded, a small smile cracking along his face. As it did, his teeth chattered audibly. He shut his mouth again, returning it to the cold grimace that the tundra gave him.

Schwarz felt almost at home at a barn. He spent almost all of his free time as a kid with barn animals, so it would stand to reason that he had a cozy feeling returning. With it also crept the feeling of sadness.

 Sam missed his family, their religious values, and even their strict rules. He missed building things, and spending an hour a day watching television. He missed schooldays, and the thirty minute bus ride. The bus ride was where he would always do his homework after lying and telling his parents he had none.

Seeing it there took him back, it warmed him. Not in a cliche way that instantly filled him with vigor and resolve, but it kept him going. He just wanted to see what was in there, and he couldn't do that if he was dead.

Did you do this on purpose? Sam got no response, as usual. Sometimes I wonder if you're ever there. The snowy wind kept blowing around him. But a barn? You know me too well. You have the be there for me. And that was good enough proof for the Private

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight

ODSTs

5:39 PM

"You two, move in from the rear entrance. Watch each other."

"Take positions on those windows. Prepare to support those going in."

"Front side.

"Right flank"

"Stay."

"Go."

Orders rushed through the comms as the group coordinated efforts around the barn. Hunter was on the left entrance, ready to breach when ordered. Two marines leaned on the fence, weapons hot and ready for action. Hunter held his M6C tightly in his right hand. He felt his gloves practically welded to the weapon from the ice that froze over. His hands felt loose and tingly inside the gloves though, and his wrist stung from the snow slipping through the cracks in his armor. Even as snow pelted his visor to damage his vision, Hunter stood frozen. Posed. Ready for action.

"Everyone ready?"

"Gimme' the count."

"Three, two, one, cover me."

Hunter pulled the door open with far too much force, causing its recoil to fire back at the ODST. Knight was too fast, though, and raced into the building in time. He heard the marine behind him reach to stop the door as he raised his pistol, tightly gripped in both hands. He surveyed a kitchen and living room, facing an empty space and marines looking back at him on the other side of the building.

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Almost Cozy

"Dining room clear." Eden whispered under his breath, while Samson ever-so-lightly nodded his head. Suddenly a shuffle came from above them, second floor. The two marines froze before motioning towards their counterparts in the room adjacent. Slowly Schwarz placed his foot on the first step, emitting a loud and very conspicuous creak. The following four steps would make the same noise. The fifth was silent, and then the remaining screeched and cried like the first.

"UNSC, show yours-self!" The Private yelled, voice cracking.

"U-UNSC...?" A female voice piped out. It was quickly hushed by another gender-less person.

"We're not here to hurt you, we j-just need-" Solomon started, from the center of the staircase.

"Show yourselves now, or we will have to use force." Cain's unbroken tone called out as he hustled by the fireteam. Sam sighed and moved directly behind the Corporal as he lined himself up next to the presumably bedroom door. Murphry was strict, per usual, but it was strange that he was being, kind of, Kind of a dick? No, don't say that. He's not a dick. It's just the cold.

"Okay! We're opening the door!" A man yelled frantically.

"Thank you for your cooperation." Cain said, Sam could tell he was grinning.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight

ODSTs

"We found them hiding in one of the bedrooms upstairs." The marine corporal stood next to Collin, arms crossed. Jason was sitting on the couch speaking to the group of four humans. From what they'd learned, they were farmers and they lived in this barn. They were told to stay put until the Covenant threat had been erased from the planet. Now the group of soldiers were leading the threat right to these people.

So much for that.

Hunter leaned against a counter in the kitchen, looking over the family. Husband, wife, and daughter. The parents were around fifty years old each, or so Hunter's guess leaned in that direction. The daughter looked in her early twenties. All of them looked terrified.

"Hunter."

"Hmm."

"Collin wants you up in the attic. There's a window up there, you're on first watch of the forest edge."

Hunter glanced at Clay, and then nodded. He slung his scarf around his neck and grabbed his supply pouch. Trotting over to the door, he heard the marine leader shout the same instructions to one of his soldiers. At least Hunter wouldn't be alone up there.

The Private used his free hand to grab his ballistic helmet and made his way up the stairs.

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Duty Calls

"Aww," Samson said dejectedly, looking at the ground. His feet tapped together.

"Don't feel so bad, first watch is easy." Solomon grinned as he leaned up against a wall. His rifle swung from a clip along his chest, and his arms were crossed smugly. Sol' was a great guy, but Sam never really thought about it. He never wondered who the PFC was before the war, but it didn't really matter. Aali was all about the war now. Well, everyone is. Everything is war. Nevermind, that's depressing to think about.

"Yeah, yeah." The Private grunted, trudging himself towards the stairs. His feet sadly slumped their way up the steps, coming to a stop at the second floor. Suddenly a voice called to him from the living room.

"Sammy!" It was Cain, only Cain called him Sammy, "You're gonna be up there for a while. Don't fall asleep."

"Thanks for the advice..?" Schwarz trailed off, pulling open the door to the attic. Like the previous staircase, they creaked ominously. However this creaking was almost a warning, and it said 'Watch out, you're going to die of boredom after like twenty minutes'. Up in the third floor sat another soldier, this one ODST. In fact, it was his friend from earlier. Around them were boxes of various shapes and sizes.

"Oh, hey man. You on first watch too?"

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
ODSTs

The PFC was leaned up against the edge of the small wooden room, the only light coming from the window above him. Snow covered the edges of the glass, as icicles hung on the other side like daggers. His supply sack he dropped down with was unraveled on his right. He had a few cans of food and some extra clips for weapons, along with an electronic lantern, which he had on. The ODST unlocked his clip and let the magazine drop halfway out just to shove it back in and repeat the process. He was getting pretty good at it.

"Oh, hey man. You on first watch too?"

Hunter raised his armored head to see the other figure in the room, a marine. The soldier looked like he knew Hunter, but he had no idea who he was. Perhaps they met in the fight, it was too fast and too intense to remember. Hunter nodded his head, tossing his magnum off to the side.

"Oh, yeah man. Slave labor," He spoke through chattering teeth, "Damn it's cold. Holy shit." The ODST gripped his ballistic helmet and tore it off, letting it fall onto his lap. He grabbed the edge of his scarf and pulled it over his nose and mouth.

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Dudes

"Yeah, lil' bit," Samson started before sauntering over towards the lone window. He planted his back next to it and slid down to a sitting position, making the sigh that was common to people stretching themselves out. Schwarz's rifle plopped into his lap. He pushed it off to the ground and pulled one knee up to his chest.

"I'm the marine from earlier, if you didn't remember." Schwarz began, "We helped each other out a few times." It was slightly warmer than it was outside, but still bone chilling. The farm-raised boy was quickly realizing just how harsh conditions can get. His lips quivered. Not with the hint of pain, but rather in unison with the rest of his body. It was really cold out.

Sam was quiet as the ODST pulled off his helmet. The soldier followed suit, lifting his green headgear off of his buzz-cut head. The frost dripped off of the brim and twinkled down onto the floor. His gloved hands protected him from the material, which was surely as freezing as when you first turn the shower on, but forget to keep use heat. Shower... That would be nice to everyone, a nice hot bath even.

The Private delicately placed it next to the Assault Rifle by his thigh. Oh jeez, I hope this isn't awkward. I can keep a conversation going for a little bit I guess, he thought, but I don't know about this guy. Silence pierced the air. Lord give me strength.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
ODSTs

Hunter just nodded in response. He had literally no idea who this guy was. They all had helmets on, maybe he was just mistaken. Whatever, no problem. It was probably Clay or someone.

The shock trooper unsheathed his knife and twirled it. He really couldn't stop touching his equipment. Ever since he enlisted he was infatuated with his weapons. Not so much when he was shooting it, more of when the fighting had died down. Maybe some people looked at their weapons and think of the lives they've taken. Hunter didn't really have that problem since he'd never shot anything in the field yet, so maybe that's the reason he lacks the guilt. They just make him feel like a hero.

Knight remembered his companion next to him and decided to dive back into reality. How long was I spacing out for? Eh, I don't care. 

"What's your name, dude?"

[BasedGoody]

Samson Schwarz
Dudes Part Two

Why the fuck is this guy touching his weapons so much? Sam thought, pursing his lips. That's creepy as shit. He's also not really talking, so I don't really-

"What's your name, dude?" He spoke. Oh, alright. I can work with this.

"Sam. Samson Schwarz. Marine Private." He said, kind of quickly. Wow, I thought I could pull this off without being awkward. More silence penetrated his ears. Where do I go from here? Well I guess it would make sense to ask what his name is.

"What about you? Uh, like, what's your na-" His voice cracked, fuck, "Uh, name?" Why am I so bad at this all of a sudden? I know people! I was semi-popular! God, why are you doing this to me now? I have to spend so long with this guy.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
ODSTs

Hunter casually tossed his knife into the air, catching it by the handle and swinging it around again. He thought it'd be cool to use his knife on someone, but he'd never find out until oppurtunity actually struck. It's become apparent that war is not like the video games or the movies. A cliche thought, but a true one nonetheless.

"I'm Hunter. Hunter J. Knight." He said with a glance to his comrade. Realizing his words were muffled, he pulled his scarf back down. The warm wetness his breath gave the scarf quickly turned icy cold on his lips and chin. He hated the cold. He hated winters back home. He much preferred his tours in more exotic locations.

"Sampson, huh? I haven't heard that name much. You grew up in the inner colonies?"

The PFC heard the voices below, muffled and quiet. He heard Collin talking to the marine who seemed in charge.

"And, uh, who's your boss?"

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Dudes Part Three

Alright, flowing conversation. Forget the nerves, you got this.

"Grew up on a farm about as Inner as you could get. Heard about the war and hopped on the bandwagon," He began, fear melting away unlike the icicles on his nose, "Boss is Corporal Murphy, he's nice. Strict, but manageable." Sam finished, a smile naturally appearing on his face. His breath was very visible as it escaped his mouth.

Even as he said it he missed it all. But time goes on. Living in the past was not an option, because, well, it was the past. Now was the present.

"So, how about you? Innie or not?" He asked, clasping his hands together. He rubbed them up against one another for warmth, but it did very little. Wow, I'm impressed. Like, three or four sentences.

"And I think I've met your 'boss' already," Sam finished, "He seemed cool."

[Arbiter124]

Private Hunter Knight
ODSTs

    Hunter heard Sam say something, but it was nothing more than a weakly shot idea that bounced right off of his realm of thought. He very suddenly could not take the excrutiating wave of cold that was invading him from all angles. Snow had gotten all under his clothes, flooding his boots and even under his body armor. He had taken several dives completely under more than three feet of snow while in the firefight, and without the adrenaline running through his body from fear of death he was unable to take it. Hunter shot to his feet in an instant and tore off his scarf and his gloves. He shivered like some kind of animated dancing skeleton and let out a loud and shaky cry of despair. He turned back to Samson and simultaneously went to work on removing his shoulder pads and ballistic vest, "Hey Sam, I don't know about you but I am going to die of hypothermia in ten minutes of less and I need get by the fire downstairs. Five minutes and we'll come back up and complete our watch hour."

    Hunter reached out his hand, his body letting out rapid waves of shivers as he kind of danced in place and looked at the marine with a playful smile.
 

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
UNSC Heretics

Samson had never technically disobeyed an order before. Of course, he hadn't really gotten that many orders so far in his military career, but he had certainly never disobeyed one of them. If you love me, keep my commands. God says that in the Bible. To a good Christian boy like Samson, disobeying God is heresy. Then again, equating our commanders to God would also be heresy. And I am freezing cold. The farm boy shrugged, grabbed Hunter's hand, and pulled himself up.

"Five minutes won't hurt anyone," Samson smiled, walking towards the door, "and I don't think I can go another second in this soaking wet uniform."

He opened the door with a creak, peering out. Not wanting to get chewed out for ditching first watch, he carefully eyed down the staircase to avoid any superiors. Cain would certainly rip him a new one for leaving, but he due to his injury he would probably be tending to his wound rather than making sure Samson was still at his post. Solomon would probably be mad, but there's not much he could do about it. Eden wouldn't care.

Samson quietly stepped down the staircase and onto the second floor. It was already a little warmer down here.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
On the Hunt for a Good Knight

"Aren't you supposed to be somewhere, Mr. Knight?"

Jason's snoot filled voice pierced Hunter's eardrum the second that he entered the door into the living room. He was leaning on a wooden post, off to the side and close to the wall. He peered at Hunter from the left, giving him a look he could only pinpoint as the kind of face his high school chemistry teacher would make at the end of every quarter at him when he asked to make up his homework. Hunter gave him big, wild eyes and knelt down low to the ground, grabbing an invisible bar and squeezing his facial features in agony, flexing his muscles and standing up with his invisible bar, curling it to his chest and raising it high into the air, eyes still wide and staring at his partner. 

"I'm going to go into cardiac arrest." Jason rolled his eyes deep into his head as he spoke the words. 

"I need to warm up really quick, maybe find the little dudes room and take a whiz. Give me five minutes." He gave Jason a sarcastic and not truly respecftul pat on his arm. His armor was off as well, and leaned up against the fireplace. His weapon was still slung around him. He gave a glance to Samson next to Hunter, and then looked back at Knight with a different motivation behind his eyes, "Oh. Do the ladies travel together to the bathroom?"

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Breaktime

"Oh. Do the ladies travel together to the bathroom?" The ODST asked.

"No, Hunter told me ODSTs do and I didn't want him to break tradition," Samson responded, leaving without waiting for a response. He looked around the living room and found a few marines strung about, along with the couple civilians they found in the house. Next to them was Eden.

Samson walked up and grabbed Eden's shoulder, causing him to jump momentarily.

"Woah, Sammy, skipping duties already? I must be rubbing off on you," the other private smiled.

"Just looking to get a bit warm. Hey, do you by chance know the symptoms of frostbite? I might have it," Samson responded, rubbing his hands together. Eden pointed an unamused glare back to him before rolling his eyes in an unsubtle fashion.

"I think you'll be fine. Allow me to introduce you to a couple people while you're skirting your job," Eden gestured towards the family.

Samson reached his cold, quivering hand out to the father of the group, who grasped it with a smile. The man's hand was warm.

"I'm Rufus. I was just telling your friend here how thankful we are for all the UNSC's help..." The father's voice trailed off as Samson and Eden shot a glance to each other. I'm not sure breaking in and taking advantage of your home constitutes as help. Are the humans in the Outer World really this nervous around the UNSC?

"Just doing our job," Samson released the handshake, scratching the back of his head.

"This is my wife Jade," the man motioned towards the woman next to him, "and this is our daughter, 
Charlotte. Our son Curtis was just here a moment ago, I'm sure he's back in his room. He gets scared quite easily."

The three looked quite disheveled, reasonably so after their night was uprooted by a large group of soldiers on the run. They reminded Sam a lot of his own family. I guess farming isn't that different no matter what planet you're on.

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Samson. Please, call me Sam," the private smiled as he spoke.

"You know, Sammy is quite the farm-boy himself," Eden laughed, wrapping his arm around him.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
Overwhelmingly Shook, Shocked Trooper

It took Hunter no time at all to abort his mission of the bathroom once he got a view of the line. He had rushed out to the side of the house and done his business, returned and found a place on the couch next to Clayton, who was telling a trio of young bloods the story of his old squad and his buddy Mickey. Clay never shut up about that old Mickey of his.

"I'm telling you, this guy knows how to drive a fuckin' Scorpion, and can man the cannon in the field. Dude's got no training. It's like his in a video game, I swear to fuckin' god." He waved his hands around, cupping a beer in one glove tightly. He was drunk. Hunter was sure of that. A small wave of panic gripped him in his spine for a moment, and he almost made a comment to his friend, but opted out. He would be met with the barrage of insults stemming from his own off the cuff reputation, and regardless such action wouldn't be in his character. Collin will say something to him.

"You want one?" Clay lifted up his bottle and shook it lightly at Hunter. He shook his head, which was rewarded with a loud groan from Clayton. He shifted to face Hunter more and plunged his hand into a cooler that was tightly between his legs. He was much bigger than Hunter. Only a few years older, but he was the kind of person who belonged in the dark ages. He was a ball of natural instincts and he was gifted with the attitude to execute those instincts. Hunter always admired that about Clayton. He wasn't at all a great guy, but at the end of the day it was people like Clayton that pushed the dark entities from space back to where they belonged.

Maybe that was the reason Hunter didn't say no the second time. He thought of asking Clay who these belonged to, and if he had asked for them. Instead he knew one wouldn't do any harm and accepted a bottle.

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
Breaktime

Samson gave the family a brief and awkward rundown of his life on a farm back home, under pressure from Eden. These people don't really give a shit that I used to haul hay bales back in the day, do they? Nevertheless, the father smiled at him deeply.

"I could tell. Us farmers can tell each other from a mile away," he continued, tapping his forehead with his pointer finger. Yeah, that's not true. The wife seemed to concur with Samson's thoughts as she raised an eyebrow towards her husband. However the young girl put a bright toothy smile on her face and nodded quickly.

"I could tell too! I know because you have a couple freckles, and you're tan! So you used to be in the sun all the time!" She happily explained, pointing towards Sam's face. He was impressed with the astute observation.

"Plus if you ever took that beanie off your head you would all get to see his luxurious blonde farmer-boy locks!" Eden continued to prod him, laughing.

Samson blushed and looked down, embarrassed. Eden was always quick to push joking compliments his way.

"C'mon, don't look so flustered. Here, I know what'll help you out," Eden held up a finger as he walked over to the couch. The marine spoke openly with the ODST sitting there, making a few hand motions. Samson turned back to see the family all staring at him, seemingly with an angry undertone. They all quickly looked away.

Eden came back and put a bottle in Samson's hand.

"Oh, you know I don't drink man-" Sam started.

"Well you normally don't leave your post when you have watch, but you did that too," Eden pushed the bottle into Sam's chest. He nodded in response and twisted to top, letting it come off with a satisfying pop. 

"They say that one beer actually steadies your aim," Eden remarked, gulping down mouthfuls in between breaths.

"Do they really say that? Or do you say that?" Samson replied, taking a sip.

"I forget. I was drunk when I heard it," the other private shrugged.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight
Orbiting Shakily but Still Trooping

Through the benefit of a good conversation with Clayton and a few beers, Hunter had concluded that Collin was planning with the Officers that they had in the bedroom that Jason was guarding. He had kept a watchful eye on Hunter for a good ten or so minutes, but now he had made advancements over to the family of the house and seemed to be... talking to their daughter? Hunter gave a narrowed brow towards that situation, but his third beer was getting to him a little bit and he lost interest. He stood up and put a hand on Clayton's shoulder, pushing him aside as he did not stop his story about him and Mickey doing something Hunter didn't care about.

He was supposed to be doing something... Watch duty. Of course.

He waltzed through the room, clutching his beer and arriving at the fire at the back of the room, where marine helmets and soaking wet rifles and his ODST armor were all sprawled out as close as they could get. Hunter heaved up his vest, still wet but not nearly as bad as before. His booze blanket would help him too. He turned for the door and practically bumped into the girl from earlier. The marine he had saved.

"H-Hey!" He managed, mentalling patting himself on the back for only committing one stutter. He looked down and saw he spilled beer on her, blood instantly and violently rushing to his face like an inflating cherry. He smiled and grabbed her hand, shoving his bottle into her hand and closing her gloved fingers around it. "Sorry, clearly I've had about enough. All yours. You from around here by any chance?"

[BasedGoody]

Samson Schwarz
What was I doing?

The beer went down a little bit easier than Samson expected. As a child he was told that alcohol was the devil, so he had never even attempted to taste it. The sheltered kid assumed that it must have tasted like the devil as well. However Samson quite liked the taste, it was bubbly and felt warm in his stomach. In fact, it made his whole body feel pretty warm. This is better than a fire. Why is it making me feel less cold? Is that one of it's effects?

He looked over to Eden, who had since taken over flirting with the farm girl after her parents left to go check on their son. Samson gave him a quick pat on the shoulder.

"What's up- oh wow, finished already? You should grab me another too," He finished, handing Sam an empty bottle. Accepting his position as beer-runner, he walked over to the couch and peered over at the large ODST guarding the cooler. He was a big guy.

"Hey, man, Samson," the marine quickly introduced while extending out his hand. The shock trooper shot a glance back at him, eying the weaker man up and down.

"Clay," he curtly said, accepting the handshake, "you here to steal more of these beers for the marines?"

Samson recoiled, "No! No, I just, well, a little bit."

"You can have one. But only if you can beat me in a race drinking it," he responded.

Oh no.

[Arbiter124]

Juvan's mandibles twitched in a sporadic and unpredictable pattern. Every time they twitched his big teeth scraped on each other, and it was not a pleasant feeling. Especially not in such a wild and rapid episode. They banged against his Special Operations helmet. He had forgotten his medication. His loss. The Kig-Yar scouts located the Humans and now was not a time to complain that he couldn't contain his excitement. Darbo stood next to him, his launcher poised and aimed at the house maybe four hundred feet from the treeline.

"You can't hit that from here brother." Juvas laughed and shook his head, mandibles still flicking like mad snakes under his mask, "That being said, give it a shot. I'll buy Wubbup off of the Jiralhanae and feed him to the Mestrobos. On me."

Hunter Knight
Ru Ro

The girl that Hunter had risked his own life to save earlier opened her mouth to speak. She was pretty. One of those naturally pretty girls, with eyes that emanated warmth like little hazel suns shining on Hunter. Her hair was tide tight but Hunter could tell it was thick and beautiful auburn hair. He was so focused on her lips, he was looking at them when they split apart from eachother to speak, tearing apart with a light resistance from the moisture of her licking her lips in the cold. Even her lips were a beautiful, elegant yet thick and healthy pair. These thoughts all ran through a buzzed Hunter as he observed her with what he wasn't sure would be a last moment of affection in his life. He knew her voice would've been beautiful.

For a split second her whole left side glowed a terribly bright green, and the next second an horrendous inferno swallowed the entire room in a pit of thrashing green fire. Hunter observed all the horror around the room in only a split second, using his ears to register the terrible pained screams. He threw both of his arms up to his head and collided hard with what felt like the corner of a wall. He ricocheted off from the impact and spun in a sideways cartwheel wildly and too fast to even register. In another half a second Hunter was flat on his back on the table, sliding with it across the room.

What is happening.

He was bucked off of the side of the table and fell on his face. Now everything was quiet. His ears screamed but he felt no pain and he scrambled to get to a state where he could assess and react. Using all of his rapidly fleeting strength he twisted onto his back and looked up. Smoke and dust and green flames levitated through the air at different levels all around him. He still heard nothing, but could instantly come to the conclusion that it was a fuel rod blast and it didn't hit anything in the room, all walls intact on the side it hit on, albeit seared and still on fire. Other than that first shot, not other shots had

It must have hit that beautiful girl.

Hunter almost feinted. His soul broke right then. Doom was upon everyone.

[BasedGoody]

Pvt. Samson Schwarz
This one's on us

Samson didn't actually know what happened. One moment, he was staring at the ceiling with a beer bottle in his mouth, chugging it down next to the ODST Clay. He remembered hearing a couple other soldiers cheering them on, some rooting for Clay, some for Samson. Wow, this is my first party.

Then he was staring at the ceiling again. However this time there was no beer in his hand, and he was a terrible ringing in his ears. Why is it so loud? His hat had flung off him, and his shoulder-length hair was covering his face. Samson ran his hand through his hair, pushing it back behind his head.

"Wha-" He stuttered out before sitting up. There was a searing pain in it. Why does my back hurt?

Why am I on the ground?

What the fuck is going on?

Samson had barely a second to process the information in front of him. There was a green fire on the rug, slowly etching it's way towards the farm-boy's foot. Every soldier had hit the deck and popped back up immediately to search for the origin. There was a leg on the ground. There were orders being shouted out. 

A leg...? Samson was not mistaken, there was a leg on the ground in front of him. It was burnt into an almost unrecognizable mass.

"SAM! Get up!" Private First Class Solomon grabbed Samson by the arm and ripped it upwards, pulling the private up to his feet.

I get it. We're under attack.

Shouldn't someone have been on watch to warn us?

Oh.

Oh no.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight 
Who's Peeping?

Hunter fought back tears with all of his might, focusing on nothing but controlling himself. It was too much.

All too much.

Collin was lifting the boy up and off the floor with one hand in the next second. Hunter flew to eye level and was placed on both feet. He met his Corporal's gaze and saw a white hot fury that made the Private think he was going to get shot right then and there. When Collin opened his mouth his voice boomed and spit flew, "What the fuck is going on? Get that FUCKING family in that room and stay in there with them right FUCKING now-"

Volleys of pink crystalline streaks shattered the windows on the left side once again, shattering and stabbing into whatever lay in their line of fire.

"They're on us now!"

"Get down!"

"What's happening?"

"Return fire!"

Hunter turned from his Commanding Officer and sprinted to the family, scooping them all in a direction with his arms. He tried to say directions to them but nothing but wheezes came out from his mouth and his brain still ran at a ridiculous pace. He ushered the three into the room and slammed the door. He couldn't hear anything again. Tendrils of panic stabbed at his sides as he tried to gain control through rapid breaths. This was too much.

This was too much.

A bloodcurdling scream erupted from behind him that shook his whole body, "My SON is out there!"

[BasedGoody]

Pvt Samson Schawrz
Shellshock

"SCHAWRZ. Get your FUCKING head in the GAME!" Solomon repeated, shoving Samson hard before turning around and diving next to a window.

"Contact! North side!" A marine randomly yelled. Samson shook his head, standing completely upright as flames and plasma splashed around him. UNSC gunfire erupted from the windows as the humans attempted to fight back, but without knowing exactly where the aliens were firing from it was a futile mission.

The farm boy snapped out of his trance as another explosion rocked the foundation of the building. It crashed into where the door used to be, creating a crater in the wooden wall. A stream of plasma and needles flew through it, seeking out flesh. It found it's target as two marines screamed out in pain simultaneously. One fell back into a gurgling mess as the plasma seared away at his neck and the other seized in pain, gripping the spot where the needle protruded from his leg.

This is God's punishment. Because I have sinned. Samson shakily huddled down behind an overturned couch, making no attempt to aim his Battle Rifle slung around his back.

I'm sorry, God. I will accept your wrath-

"MOMMY!? DADDY!?" The noise of the young child pierced through his thoughts. Samson fearfully shot a look to the stairs to see the kid crying as he peered over the railing. The private sprung into action, taking leaping bounds toward the staircase. The unmistakable sound of needles crashed behind his feet as he sprinted. 

Schwarz grabbed the kid by the arm and hoisted him into his chest, holding him like a parent would hold their child. He looked around for the family, but couldn't find them. Where are they? He wondered, but took no second thought as he shoved open the door to the nearest room. 

Staring back at him was the family. And Hunter.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter Knight

Hunter stared into the eyes of his newly made friend as they together shared a look of terrible fear. But all it took was one quick catch of the terrified child in Sam's arms to receive a powerful sense of cool wash over him. It stayed. His face hardened, but calmed down as he looked back up to Sam. 

"You and me. In here. I'm gonna' hold the door tight, see if there's a spot to hide them." He sprung towards the door and grabbed a bookshelf set neatly against the side wall, the only other set of furniture besides a small bed and a desk and chair by the window. His sense of urgency forced his muscled into overtime, and he hauled the bookshelf in front of the door with ease. He caught a glance at Samson again and saw the darkness of panic and dread taking grip on him again, "Let me get your rifle. If they come in, you have my word I will blow their shit off." Hunter unholstered his own pistol and hopscothed over to the father. He took it in shaking hands and Hunter held his hands ten thousand times tighter than he wished he had held that sweet girl's. "Just in case."

[BasedGoody]

Pvt Samson Schawrz
Sin

Samson gladly handed his Battle Rifle over to his fellow sinner. There wasn't much of a chance he'd get a kill with it anyway. Rather he gave away his weapon and looked around the room quickly for a proper hiding spot. His eyes bounced over to a closet in the corner.

"Quickly, everyone, into the closet," he ordered with as much authority as he had. 

Samson ushered the civilians into the small, four by four foot dark room and closed the door tightly behind them.

"Don't make any noise, and don't come out for any reason," Sam continued, hoping they didn't take notice to how his voice shook.

[Arbiter124]

Hunter knelt on the far end of the room and knelt behind the bed, rifle clutched and leveled at the door. Something about knowing he was the best chance gave him a boost a confidence. He needed to do something, anything he did would be better than these poor people waiting for a sloppy cremation. The noise outside was horrific. It didn't sound like the Covenant had breached the house yet, but the gunfire on both sides was rapid and he could hear a man sobbing in pain just outside the door.

"Sam, far wall." Hunter's eyes locked on an old and out of issue shotgun hung up on the wall above the desk. Hunter slung the rifle and leaped to the gun, taking it and throwing it to his partner. He spun back around to the desk and opened two drawers, the latter with a succsessful pile of slug rounds. He pointed at those and raced back to his position with his rifle, "Load that shit and get close to the door, but so they can't see you. Best chance."

[BasedGoody]

Pvt Samson Schawrz
Eden

What a strange coincidence, Samson thought as he held the shotgun. It was the same exact model that he once used to shoot coyotes that tried to break into the chicken coop. At least he knew how to use it. The farm boy quickly loaded in six shells and stood adjacent to the door, training the shotgun in front of him. The gunfire outside grew louder and louder, as the unforgettable growl of Covenant soldiers grew closer and closer. It seems as if the two UNSC soldiers waited in that room for an eternity. Slowly the human gunfire grew more dispersed and less common. The screams replaced them.

Outside he heard the sounds of close quarters combat. Grunts wailing, Skirmishers hissing, and the angered yells of his fellow soldiers. He shot a panicked look to Hunter.

"We can't protect these civilians from whatever the fuck is out there. Not just the two of us. We have to go-" Schwarz was cut off.

The door busted open and without looking Samson pulled the trigger and fired a shell. He snapped his view to the doorway to find he had aimed about two feet above the head of Eden, barely missing him.

"FUCK! My ears! What the fuck Sam?" The other private yelled, retaining his attitude even in combat

"Eden?!" Sam barely yelped before lowering his shotgun and reaching his arm out to hug his friend. However instead he caught a swift right hook to the mouth from him. Samson fell back on to his ass, dropping the shotgun on the ground. Eden towered over him, but his face was twisted with sadness.

"S-sorry," he said, reaching a hand down to pull Samson back to his feet. The farm boy accepted, standing back up with Eden's help. He wiped some blood away from his nose and winced in pain, it felt broken.

"No. This is my fault," Samson muttered, defeated. An explosion shook the building as he scooped up the shotgun.

"No, it's our fault. It's all our fault. We should've known the Cov's would still be hot on our ass. I shouldn't have let you stay downstairs. And we really shouldn't have risked letting these people get in harms way," As Eden spoke, the closet door creaked open and the father poked his head out.

"But now's the time to atone. You gotta get them outta here, safely. To the evac," Eden finished.

"Wh- what about you?" Samson stammered.

"I'm the brave distraction, dying heroically in the field of battle. C'mon, don't you watch movies?" Eden smiled, turning around to leave.

"Wait! No, you can't- " Samson put a hand out to stop Eden, but was cut off.

"This is how I atone. Now you do your part," he finished, as if he knew these were the last words he would ever say. The two nodded to each other one more time before Eden ran back out the door.

[Faclan]

(Nice to see you two again :>)

Cad - Ruuthian Major
Holding position outside the building
No-where left for the Ouis to hide!

Finally something was happening in this frozen hell. FINALLY. Him and his scouting file had returned to base for a brief time to warm up as they were berated for having left the Humans at all. But thankfully the Sangheili was distracted when a report came in from one of the Banshee fly overs. A home had been spotted. And so barely dry and warm the file was sent out to confirm the sighting and to keep real time sight on it.

Which meant standing around getting cold doing nothing. GREAT. At least his scarf was keeping his long neck warm and he had his holy anger to help as well.

But the T'vaoan had kept eyes on it as the others watched and changed off every so often with the binoculars. Reporting that the two Humans that had been outside had gone inside as the main assault force had approached and worked on surrounding the house as best they could. Cad and his file had moved to the back as they had less impressive weaponry than the strike team but were keeping weapons up just in case. There was still some fire fighting but it seemed to be dying down as the Humans were whittled down as well. Wouldn't be long now.

That was until a shirtless Human screamed from a balcony clutching an old wood affixed shotgun and leapt from it. Firing at the barely visible shields in the darkness and still just screaming. It was quite a show and several Unggoy and Kig-Yar had stopped to stare. But after about fifteen feet of screaming and wild firing a Sangheili with a carbine plugged two tracers into the Humans chest and it toppled sideways, did a roll, and then lay dead.

Riiiiiight then! The lesser Covenant working on getting their mind back on track, shouldn't be many Humans left right?

(Hope that was good for ya both. Assumed that the old shotgun would be used for the distraction so the Marines could keep the good weapons.)

[Arbiter124]

Pvt. Hunter Knight
ODSTs

Hunter had thrown down his head behind the bed in response to the explosive sound the ancient weapon Samson fired at his friend.  Chunks of wood and volleys of splinters launched in his direction and covered his face. He glanced up, again unable to utilize his ears. He heard his friends voices much farther away than they were. The one that had burst into the room had now spun back out and Sam was shutting the door again, barricading it with his body. Hunter wasn't prepared for that blast in this tiny room, especially not without his helmet. He forced himself to concentrate, to put himself back into this situation. He was shaking terribly. 

Get it together.

Don't let these people die. They will be butchered.

Try!

Hunter moved straight to Sam and grabbed him tightly in both arms. "We need to get the family to the drop zone. If I can get to my helmet I can relay communications to the pilot and he can send me the drop zones location on my HUD." Hunter's eyes were wild. The adrenaline started to kick in wildly with the picture of a plan in his mind. He just needed to get to his helmet. He would figure the rest out then. 

Your team?

Knight used his grip on Sam to nudge him aside, and he grabbed hold of the doorknob and opened the door without a second thought, "I'll be right back, please god stay here with them." Without another word he was off and through the door, walking into a tundra blanketed in wildfire. The marines and Clayton were all up front, where the left side of the wall once stood. Now it was two or three planks that five people were pushing against each other to hide behind. Even that dripped with emerald fire and threatened to be reduced to ash in minutes. He saw the silhouettes of things that should not be real and darted right towards the stairs.

"Get back in that FUCKING room Kn-" Hunter heard Collin's voice change to a high pitched scream but he did not slow his pace. He hit the stairs in three seconds or less and ran up each step three steps at a time. In a moment he was in the upper attic, where his helmet was not where he left it. His heart skipped a beat and he slid onto his knees to start to frantically search, but stopped just short upon realization that he had left it downstairs to dry off.

"Fuck!"

"SKRRAAAAW-"

SCHTCK!

Giant metal talons landed on the window directly in front of him and gripped onto it with such force that Hunter felt the impact. His whole body went cold. The tendrils of panic shot out from the blackness of his mind and seized his brain, shooting doses of fear into him. Through his helmet he locked eyes with the creature. A monster straight out of the prehistoric. Too much.