Thread: Sniper Canyon ( rose_and_raven and wiki234  )

One deep breath, then another, and Kanoni emerged into consciousness like a drowning person breaking the surface of a turbulent river. Every gasp of air made her stomach churn and head throb with each beat of her heart. Slowly she became aware of the chilly stone pressing against her back and the sticky mat of blood that soaked hair as well as the fact she wasn't wearing her helmet but couldn't remember taking it off. Her eyes fluttered open, light danced across her vision, piercing her skull with its brilliance forcing her to close them again. After a few moments she opened her eyes again. Clouds formed with every breath that passed her lips, and the only warmth was the steady trickle of blood seeping down the side of her face. What had happened? Where was she? Hazy memories crystallized into diamond-sharp focus a pair of dark shapes leaping down from the canyon rim an ambush a dead end canyon and the soft crack of something smashing into her helmet with a strength born of utter hate then utter darkness. As Kanoni tried to pull herself upright, a sudden wave of dizziness engulfed her and the strength drained from her arms. Then she found herself flat in her back again. The dark ceiling began to swim in a nauseating manner. Squeezing her eyes shut again she waited until the waves of oily nausea stop then opened them again, this time the darkness above her remained still. A shiver trembled over her skin, and sweat turned frigid across her forehead as she squinted at the distant ceiling. It looked like she was in a natural cave of some sort though she couldn't recall crawling into it. The blood that had pooled under her head and matted her suggest she'd been laying on the cave floor for some time. Uso? she called out, the single word rasped between her parched lips. No answer, and already her mind was reeling with gruesome scenarios. The Militia was never kind to downed Titans of an enemy faction and their salvage teams were known for dismantling Titans while they were still alive. She wasn't even sure how badly the Ronin had been damaged or if he had escaped the larger Titans. If he had, then they likely crippled him one way or another so they could return latter to steal data from his data recorder or worse. The link was silent meaning the Ronin was either unconscious or purposely blocking his end. She lifted one arm and gingerly probed at the side of her head, wincing at the sharp stab of pain then let her hand drop back down to the cold stone floor. There was a high powered LED flashlight in her pack that would allow her to see into the darker spots of the cave for any trace of the Ronin but the light would act like a beacon in the dark for any near by enemy forces or scavengers. Kanoni slowly sat up again, ignoring the dull flare of pain in her shoulder. Far as she could tell she had no broken bones but she was a mess of bruises and no doubt had a few cracked ribs if the flare of pain in her chest was anything to go by. Head throbbing she closed her eyes and leaned back on her arms, slowly breathing the cold dry desert air. A few more hours until the sun was up and shed enough light for her to see so she could scavenge what she could from the battlefield near the mouth of the canyon then retreat back to the safety of the cave before the temperature climbed. A few hours until dawn. She could hold out till then.