I take manual control of the rover as I reach the field. Chaos, that’s what’s needed and I’m about bring it. The rover doesn’t slip as the wheels tear through the grass. I plow through several of Draven’s men and many of the shields leaving them open. Nobody brought a tank or heavy artillery because nobody expected a bulletproof rover to be doing laps through the battlefield. The shields cause some difficulty for the rover so I avoid them, heading straight towards the enemy. I’m sure they won’t die from a hit because of all the armor they’re wearing but it leaves openings.

I open the radio channels, “this is Duane Bishop, lend me your guns. They’re here to kill us, and I’m, not ready to die yet,” I close communications, hoping it gets the survivors riled up. The rover is starting to overheat again, I don’t have many more passes at Draven’s men so I need to make it count. I’ve got great aim but I’m not going to be a ton of use in an open battlefield. I’ve got one more trick up my sleeve and it’s a big one. I make two more passes, hitting at least four of the soldiers. I count about twenty men so maybe two platoons, we can win this. They’ve got us out gun and out strategized, but they’re by the book.

The ramp leading to the cargo bay for their ship is down. It’s careless, I’ve seen it every time I made a pass. Afraid to do what needs to be done, but I’ve got one more in me. I rev the engine to full speed, driving straight into the gun fire. The windshield begins to crack from all the gunshots, I close my eyes, afraid to look death in the eye. I slam my foot down harder, pushing the rover to it’s limits. I bounce up in my seat as I hit the ramp and into the cargo bay. The rover slides on the slippery surface at high speed quickly crashing through the materials.

When the rover comes to a stop I hear shouting. I’m shaken up but I try to quickly regain my footing. I’ve blocked off the rest of the ship, and separated the men outside from their support. No more medics, no more replacements or extra equipment. There’s banging on the doors of the rover. I’ve got a choice to make. I can exit the driver’s side door and head back to the battlefield, and try to help them. I can exit the passenger side and try to be a hero, hope Draven is inside and try to take him out on my own. I could sit here and wait for it’s over, try to appease whatever side wins.

“Thore, how are things out there,” I ask.

“Better, perhaps winnable.”

“Good,” I end transmission.

I cough, and spit out a little blood. Some kind of internal injury. I don’t have much longer, so I’m going to need to decide quickly. I don’t have much time left before my body quits on me. For once, adrenaline feels good. It’s keeping me moving. I take cover in the back of the rover and roll down the passenger side windows. I take a deep breath, when someone pokes a rifle through the window, I don’t hesitate, I squeeze the trigger before they can hit me. I don’t think about, I don’t get a good look at their face, just the rifle that was going to kill me. There’s more shouting and I lean down, firing through the window. Ducking and preparing the next round of charges on my rifle.

When things seem clear I exit the rover. All these ships look similar, it reminds me of running and trying to hide in our own ship. I’m not hiding anymore, I don’t have that luxury anymore. I’ve done too much to hide now. I spot Draven, out in the open on the bridge.

“Are you the hero come to bring me down,” he asks.

“I’m not a hero, just a man who doesn’t want to die.”

He tosses a sword to me, they’ve been making a comeback, but I never used one. “Let’s fight like men. If you win, we leave. If I win, you all get to go home.”

“That sounds like a fair deal,” I say.

“It’s the only way to do business,” Draven smiles, extending the blades from his gauntlets.

“That’s too bad.”

“What’s too bad?”

“That this isn’t business,” I start to fire shots as Draven dives out of the way.

I rush to cover, he isn’t carrying a gun, because he’s arrogant, but I know the blades are projectiles. I can’t trust him. Marshall’s notes mentioned he uses deception. I try to draw him out, force him to launch one of the blades, maybe both but he doesn’t seem to be giving me the chance. Chaos, the word of the day. I set my rifle to fully automatic, much less accurate but accuracy doesn’t matter for what I’m about to do.

I begin firing, at anything and everything. Only taking cover to reload. I hear Draven scream out in pain, but I don’t see him. I step out and begin to fire again, hoping to lure him out. I spot a trail of blood quickly crossing the floor making ground towards me. Just blood on the floor, he’s camouflaged himself somehow. If he wasn’t hit I would miss him. I line up, and fire, fully automatic, the blood stops and there’s a thud as his body drops.

Slowly his body appears. The armor he was wearing, cracked and odd. I didn’t think about it in the moment. It’s weird, Revreell style. Do they have camouflage that can make people invisible? That’s dangerous. Somebody needs to hear about that. A small amount of vomit quickly shoots up my throat an out my mouth. Is that blood mixed in there? That’s not good, somebody needs to know about this too. Why am I looking at the ceiling?