Halo: Team Kopis

==Summary==
Sent to recover a lost probe, the SPARTAN-IIIs of Team Kopis run into unexpected difficulties on what was supposed to be an easy task.
==Characters==
===Primary===
*Vincent-G270 (Human Male, Squad Leader for Team Kopis)
*Cassandra-G006 (Human Female, Medic for Team Kopis)
*Nathan-G235 (Human Male, Member of Team Kopis)
*Alex-G014 (Human Male, Member of Team Kopis)
*Benjamin-G015 (Human Male, Member of Team Kopis)
===Secondary===
*Jake-G293 (Human Male, Squad Leader for Team Jian)
*Simon-G294 (Human Male, Member of Team Jian)
*Ralph-G299 (Human Male, Member of Team Jian)
*Mary-G130 (Human Female, Member of Team Jian)
*Terrence-G150 (Human Male, Member of Team Jian)
*Team Xiphos (SPARTAN-III Fire Team)
==Halo: Team Kopis==
===Part 1: Insertion===
SPARTAN-G270, Vincent, felt the lurch of the Pelican as it descended through Han III's atmosphere. Although nothing compared to the jolt one felt when one of the wedge-shaped dropships first launched from a frigate's bay, such a bump was still sufficient enough to send his insides churning. Looking at his four teammates sitting around him, he could tell from their postures that they too had been affected by the turbulence. Although their faces were concealed by the helmets of their SPI armor, it was easy for Vincent to read their body language. After all, they had been training together as a squad for too long to remember.
"So like I was saying," said Nathan-G235, continuing the thought he had been expressing before the jolt had interrupted him. "This is gonna be a milk run. We go in, find that satellite, and get some computer back to the evac point. The Covies probably don't even know it's there."
"Don't jinx us," warned Benjamin-G015. "Let's not let our guard down just because this mission is the simplest we've had in a while."
"You're always such a pessimist," Nathan told him. "We've got our camouflage systems if things get crazy. The squid heads won't know what hit 'em."
"I prefer squid heads to Bravo Kilos," put in Alex-G014. "Those Brutes are freaky."
"The briefing said to expect a light enemy presence," said Nathan confidently. "The most we can expect is a couple lances of Grunts or Jackals with three or four Elites or Brutes leading them. Easy kills."
Their mission was, as Nathan was so eager to point out, a simple one. One of the UNSC's slipspace probes had been discovered and shot down by a Covenant frigate orbiting the jungle world of Han III. The cruiser Rendezvous had arrived to recover the probe's onboard computer and was currently locked in a stalemate with the Covie frigate. The Rendezvous had three SPARTAN-III teams assigned to it, but the ship's captain had figured that one would be enough to retrieve the computer. While Kopis went in, the other teams would remain behind as backup, going in only if Kopis ran into any trouble on the surface. With only a single Covenant ship present in a system with little natural resources, it had been estimated that only a few hundred hostile troops could be expected at the very most. It was, as Nathan had said, a milk run.
The dropship pilot's voice rang over the intercom. "Thirty seconds 'till touchdown people, look sharp!"
Vincent checked his MA5K. "All right Kopis, let's get this thing over with!"
As the others got to their feet, Vincent went over a brief combat plan. "Alex, you and your shotgun are on point. Nathan, Cassandra, you two flank me while I take the middle. Benjamin, you watch our backs. Got it?"
As a chorus of affirmatives sounded over their private helmet channel, the bay door of the Pelican slid down to reveal steaming jungle for as far as the eye could see. With the computer issuing a distress beacon, finding it would be easy, even in this thick foliage. Alex cocked his shotgun before diving from the troop bay and onto the ground. Vincent, aware of Nathan and Cassandra at his shoulders, moved next. Behind him and his wingmen, he heard Benjamin hit the ground last.
Team Kopis watched as the Pelican lifted off into the clear blue sky. After it had dwindled into little more than a speck, Vincent dropped a signal beacon onto the ground. That would lead them right back to this place for pickup once the computer was secure. A clean, in and out mission.
Team Kopis formed up and headed into the jungle, moving towards the computer's beacon.
===Part 2: Combat===
Two hours later, the mission wasn't looking quite so easy.
The probe had crashed in the middle of a large clearing that was surrounded by jungle on all sides. Now Team Kopis was huddled on a ledge that overlooked the clearing, situated about ten feet above the clearing's green floor. The probe was in site, half buried in a charred crater. The only problem was that the Covenant had also located the probe. And there were a lot of them.
About fifty Grunts surrounded the crater in a loose circle. They were divided into lances of five, with two Jackals for every lance protecting the Grunts with their energy shields. More lances patrolled the outside of the circle, these ones being led by blue armored Brute Minors. And within the circle were five more Brutes. Four of these wore gold armor and were armed with either Carbines or Brute Shots. The fifth was a red and black clad Chieftain with a huge Gravity Hammer slung over his back.
"You just had to jinx us, didn't you?" Alex growled at Nathan. "Light enemy presence, my ass!"
"Stay focused," Vincent cut in before Nathan could shoot back a retort. "We still have to get that probe's computer."
As he looked over the massed enemy troops, he felt an odd feeling come over him. It wasn't fear or even apprehension for the coming battle. The feeling was more like... finality. That somehow, in being deployed to search for the probe, these soldiers had decided something about Team Kopis's future. But Vincent quickly pushed the feeling away. He was the team leader, and that meant he had a responsibility to the rest of the team. There was no time for inward thinking.
"I've got a plan," he said, motioning his team to move away from the ledge. "It takes a little out of Team Jian's book."
"And what would that be?" asked Benjamin.
"Well, whenever Jian needs to thin the enemy ranks they send Simon out to get their attention. The Covies see him, they chase him, and he runs like hell. The rest of Jian then ambushes the Covies while their attention is on Simon. What I'm thinking is that one of us goes down there and gets them to chase him through the jungle. The remaining four will mop up any hostiles who stay behind, grab the computer, and then head back to the evac point. The one running decoy shakes off the pursuit and links up with us anywhere along the way. It'll only be a little harder than Nathan predicted."
The team nodded their heads in agreement, but there was one voice of doubt.
"But who'll be the decoy?" asked Cassandra, the quietest member of the team.
Vincent frowned behind his helmet. Cassandra was the fastest one on the team, but she was also the least proficient in combat. He couldn't send her off alone against all of those enemies. They'd need someone supporting them when they moved in, which ruled out Benjamin. The fight to get the computer would most likely be limited to medium range, which meant...
"Alex," he said, feeling like an asshole. "You get to be the decoy."
To Vincent's relief, Alex didn't voice a single word of protest. "You got it. I'll have to leave my shotgun with Ben, so I'll use my SMG and some grenades to get their attention. Ben, if anything screwy happens to my baby while I'm gone, I break your face. Got it?"
Turning to the rest of the team, Vincent said, "If they don't go for Alex, we'll open fire from here while he gets back to us. After that we'll just have to play things by ear."
"Don't worry," Alex assured him. "These ugly bastards are dumb as rocks. They'll go for me as soon as I make my move, no doubt about it."
He slid away from the team and activated his camouflage, vanishing into the jungle. Vincent looked at the others. "Once they move off, Cassandra and Nathan will flank me and we'll move into the clear. Benjamin, use your sniper rifle and take out those gold ones as fast as possible. Once they're down, take out hammer boy. We'll thin the others with grenades and pick off any stragglers with our MA5Ks."
As they watched the clearing, an object soared into the middle of one of the patrolling lanes. It revealed itself to be a grenade when it detonated, obliterating the Grunts and Jackals and leaving the Brute leader slumped in the dirt and howling, its intestines draped over its side like a foul string. Before any of the others could even begin to react, SMG fire ripped through two more Grunts. It was only after Alex had downed a surprised Jackal that the others began to shake off their shock.
Alex's voice rang out from the jungle and echoed around the clearing. "Hey bastards!" he yelled. "Come 'n get it uglies!"
The Chieftain snarled an order to his troops and they charged en masse towards Alex's position. As the Covies disappeared into the jungle, only the Chieftain, his bodyguards, and two lances remained. As the Grunts and Jackals formed a protective ring around the crater, the Brutes scanned the woods ahead for any more enemies.
"Ready..." murmured Vincent as he offered a silent prayer for Alex's safety. "Ready... Now!"
He, Nathan, and Cassandra leapt from the ledge and charged forward. Four shots from Benjamin's rifle rang out, and three of the four gold Brutes fell; the fourth was divested of its power armor. The three moving SPARTANs hurled grenades into the Grunt and Jackal ranks, killing most and scattering the others. By this time Benjamin had reloaded and taken down the remaining Brute, but the Chieftain grabbed the body and used it to shield himself from the next three shots. With the remaining Grunts and Jackals dealt with, the Chieftain was left alone in the midst of the corpses. Throwing his meat shield away, he charged the SPARTANS.
The Chieftain's advance was met by a hail of bullets. He faltered and then collapsed under the sheer weight of Kopis's combined fire. Vincent sprinted past the body and hurled himself behind the crashed probe. When no further enemies presented themselves, he motioned for Nathan to move up. "Alright, get that computer out!"
As Nathan ripped open a panel on the probe and began to root around inside it, Vincent opened a link to Alex. "Alex! We've almost got the computer, try and get back to us ASAP!"
Alex's reply was garbled with static. "I... you. Careful... all over me. Be ready... too close!"
Vincent bit back a curse. From what he could glean from the mangled transmission, the Covenant were hot on Alex's heels and he'd be bringing them down right on top of the rest of the team when he arrived. "Nathan! Hurry the hell up!"
"Can't rush an artist..." Nathan muttered, his voice tense. With a grunt of satisfaction he pulled a fist-sized cube from the probe's interior. "Got it!"
At that moment Alex appeared from the woods, going at full speed towards their position. Motioning for the others to do the same, Vincent scrambled to climb back up to the ledge. As he, Alex, Nathan, and Cassandra rejoined Benjamin, the first of the pursuing Covenant entered the clearing. Seeing the carnage and the retreating SPARTANs, the lead Brute howled in rage and led his fellows in charging the ledge. Benjamin killed him with his rifle, but there were just too many for Kopis to handle.
"Alright everyone, let's get to the evac point. Move!"
Team Kopis scrambled into the woods with the Covenant hot on their heels.
===Part 3: Death in the Jungle===
Team Kopis scrambled through the foliage as the sounds of the Covenant grew ever louder behind them. Vincent was already beginning to tire, and he had no idea how Alex was holding up after his time spent acting as decoy. 
Stopping to rest in a creek, the SPARTANs scanned the foliage behind them. The noises of pursuit had begun to fade, and Vincent saw no reason to continue tiring his team out. The reason he had chosen to stage their breather in a stream was because it was the best area they had encountered so far for getting a message off to the Rendezvous.
"Rendezvous, this is Team Kopis. Do you read?"
"We read you Team Kopis. What's the situation."
"We've got the computer, but enemy ground forces have us heavily outnumbered. Requesting backup on the double."
"Very good Kopis, teams Jian and Xiphos will be deployed at the pickup spot to give you a hand. Rendezvous out."
Vincent turned back to his team. "We've got reinforcements inbound. Now all we need to do is-"
His dialogue was cut short when a Beam Rifle was fired through Benjamin's skull. As the others leaped away, Vincent saw the glint of a Jackal sniper's eye goggle and sprayed the distant body with fire. As the sniper crumpled, Vincent turned and ran to Benjamin.
The beam had entered the back of his helmet and exited out of the faceplate. A bloody crack on either side was all the evidence that anything had hit him. But there was no doubt that Benjamin was dead.
"Oh shit..." breathed Alex. "Ben..."
"Maybe if certain people had been watching their field of fire more carefully that wouldn't have happened," snarled Nathan as he looked at Cassandra.
Vincent knew the body language of his teammates by heart, and he could tell from the way Cassandra slumped that Nathan's accusation had cut deep. Before he could order Nathan back in line, the furious SPARTAN continued. "She was supposed to be covering that area! If she wasn't such a miserable incompetent them maybe Ben would still be alive!"
Cassandra had started to tremble. She had always been to soft, to sensitive...
"Enough!" Vincent roared. "The only ones responsible for Ben's death are the Covenant. We can't afford to lose our discipline at a time like this. If he were still here, Ben would agree. He turned back to Benjamin's body and pulled his friend's sidearm from its holster. "Nathan, take his grenades."
"And the rifle?"
"No one could handle it like Ben could. We leave it here, along with a present for the Covenant." He glanced at Alex. "Put a satchel charge on the body and program it to be triggered by movement."
As Alex unslung the satchel charge and began to prime it, Vincent could hear the growing sounds of more Covenant. Alex finished with his task and Team Kopis, now down a man, sprinted away. A few moments later they heard an explosion and screaming behind them. The Covenant had reached the creek.
The beacon Vincent had planted at the evac point was still giving off a strong signal. As Kopis headed for it, they ran into a rock wall that went up nearly eight feet. 
"Nathan, I'll give you and Cassandra a boost up and then you pull me up. Alex, you cover us."
As he helped Cassandra onto the wall, a plasma pistol bolt splashed into the stone beside him, boiling them red hot.
"They're too close!" spat Alex. "I'll hold 'em off while you guys get sorted!" He dashed off back the way they had come and vanished. The sound of a shotgun firing over and over could be heard seconds later.
There was nothing he could do for Alex right now. Vincent boosted Nathan and then held out his hands to be lifted. "Alex!" he called. "Get your ass over here now!"
More Covenant fire was slicing through the woods now. Vincent was pulled to the top, where he turned back for Alex. "Alex!" he bellowed as the sounds of the shotgun were replaced by SMG fire. "Alex!"
There was a surprised grunt, and then Alex was stumbling backwards through the trees. Three spiker nails were embedded in his gut and there were plasma burns across his chest. His back slammed against a tree trunk and he fired one last, desperate burst at the unseen foe. Then a final Spiker round embedded itself in Alex's faceplate and he fell still.
"No," whispered Cassandra. "Not Alex too..."
Vincent forced himself into action. He still had a responsibility to the rest of his team. "They're right on top of us! We gotta move now!"
They stumbled away from the sight of their friend's corpse. As the roars of the Covenant grew ever louder, they ran, ignoring the slaps and scratches of the branches and bushes.
They were within half a mile of the evac point when Nathan screamed "Get down!" and shoved both Vincent and Cassandra to the ground. Unable to dive away in time from whatever it was he had seen, he instead sprayed his MA5K on full auto while bellowing a challenge. And then the sound of a gravity hammer's impact resounded and Nathan was gone.
Vincent was paralyzed for a moment by pure shock when he saw the hammer's wielder. It was the Chieftain they had "killed" earlier in the clearing. With blood soaking its armor and a savage grin on its face, it was truly a horrific sight. As the beast lurched forward the two remaining SPARTANs blazed away at it. As fresh blood burst from the joints in its armor, the Brute howled and charged. A grenade from Vincent blew the Chieftain's arm off, but it came on still, clutching the hammer in one meaty fist.
Vincent tripped on a log and fell backwards. As the Brute continued to advance, the downed SPARTAN continued to fire his MA5K, determined to die fighting...
The Chieftain stopped, groaned, and keeled over as its wounds finally took their toll. Getting up, Vincent fired the rest of his clip into the Brute's head, determined not to make the same mistake. Meanwhile, Cassandra had found Nathan and was cradling him in her arms. Half of him, to be exact. The blast from the gravity hammer had torn his torso from his legs. Vincent didn't even need to check to see that he was beyond even Cassandra's remarkable talent as a medic. He was gone.
Reaching down, he plucked the computer from Nathan's body and handed it to Cassandra. He could hear the rest of the enemy, now too close to outrun. There was only one way to complete the mission now. Vincent felt strangely calm as he realized that he was about to die.
"You know where the evac point is," he told his final teammate. "The Pelican should be there by now. I'll run decoy, draw them off."
"No," she whispered, shaking her head. "No!"
"It's the only way we can finish this now," he said quietly. "They're too close."
"I'll stay with you!" She was on her feet now, on her feet and trembling all over. "We can fight them off together!"
Vincent shook his head. They were running out of time. "No we can't. This is the only way."
"I won't kill you, not like I killed Ben!"
"Listen to me Cassandra!" Vincent barked. "You were not responsible for his or anyone else's deaths. I swear to you, you were not responsible. Now get going."
"Besides," he added, trying to smile, trying to be brave. "Simon runs decoy all the time for Jian. He never lets anything happen to him, right?"
Without waiting for an answer, he pushed Cassandra forward. "Get out of here." Then he ran off into the woods, yelling and firing his MA5K.
Cassandra never saw him again.
===Part 4: Evac===
SPARTAN-G294, Simon, checked his weapon and tried to calm his nerves as Team Jian's Pelican descended. He wished that the others were as nervous as he was, but they all seemed at ease within their armor.
"Be advised," warned the pilot, "scanners are showing lots of contacts down there, expect enemy fire once we land."
"Didn't intel say this place wasn't that crowded?" asked Mary-G130.
"Turns out it wasn't," muttered Jake-G293. "That's what you get for believing the stories the intel boys tell you, you're old enough not to believe in fairy tales by now."
The dropship stopped moving, and the copilot stepped from the cockpit to assemble the machine gun stowed in one of the overhead compartments. "I'll provide covering fire with this while you secure the LZ."
Team Jian stood as the hatch began to open. Already they could hear the sound of plasma fire outside. When the hatch had dropped the SPARTANs sprinted from the troop bay and behind the nearest available cover. The Covies were thick on the ground, and Simon could make out the outlines of Grunts, Jackals, and Brutes against the trees. He ducked back behind his protective log as more plasma fire soared past his head to splash against the Pelican's hull. Glancing to the side, Simon could see Team Xiphos deploying from their Pelican in a similar fashion.
"This LZ is friggin'hot!" yelled Ralph-G299. "Are you telling me we sent Kopis into this alone?"
Simon saw a Grunt trying to flank his cover and blazed away with his MA5K, knocking the little alien onto its back. "Jake, we can't stay here for long!"
"Five minutes," replied his team leader. "Josh agreed to that number. Then we bug out."
Crouching behind the log, Simon reloaded. Five minutes was an awfully long time for Team Xiphos's ruthless leader to agree to. Jake must have done some hard convincing over the radio on the way down. While he didn't like having to be stuck in a blazing firefight any longer than necessary, he couldn't help but feel proud that his team leader had secured Kopis as best a chance as possible. Heaven knew that he'd want any Pelicans to wait as long as it took if it were him trying to get extracted.
"Where the hell are they?" demanded Joshua over the radio. He and his squad were laying down a heavy sheet of fire upon the advancing Covenant.
Simon risked showing himself to hurl a grenade at a cluster of Grunts. It fell off target, but managed to wound several of them with shrapnel when it exploded. He was beginning to wonder if Team Kopis had been destroyed.
"There!" yelled Terrence-G150 from where he was scanning for snipers with his Battle Rifle. "I see one!"
A single SPARTAN-III was stumbling towards them through the crossfire of plasma, spikes, and bullets.
"Cover him!" Jake bellowed.
Simon paused in mid-reload. "But where are the others?"
----
Vincent ran through the jungle in what would be the last battle of his short life. He fired his MA5K, cutting down a Grunt that had emerged from a bush. He fired again, bringing down two more, and then again as a Jackal attempted in vain to bring its shield around in time. He was a machine, firing and reloading like the MA5K was an extension of his body rather than a held tool. He fired into a Brute until its power armor failed and it crumpled under his onslaught. A single plasma bolt struck his armor, but Vincent didn't even feel it.
He fired for Benjamin, for Alex, for Nathan. He fired for Cassandra, who was still alive and whose life he still might be able to save. Throwing a grenade, he blew a Brute off its feet and into a tree, where its neck turned at an unnatural angle. He reloaded again and continued running, screaming curses and taunts and threats at the innumerable foe. There was an explosion as a Brute Shot's projectile exploded near him and filled his side with shrapnel. His dash turned into a limping jog.
Running out of clips for the MA5K, he drew both of his pistols, his and Benjamin's, and fired at the enemies as they continued to appear. A Grunt took a round to the head and vanished in a blue spray of blood. A Jackal went down as two shots punched through its chest. Vincent was unstoppable, a god of war, a SPARTAN...
And then the Spike grenade exploded and knocked him backwards, over the edge of a gently flowing waterfall and towards the rocks below.
----
The SPARTAN-III reached Team Jian's perimeter and collapsed next to Jake. After inspecting the gasping new arrival, he announced, "It's Cassandra. She looks all right."
An explosion sent spikes of wood flying from Simon's log and over his head. "Where are the others?" he asked after opening a link to Cassandra's radio.
Her silence was all the confirmation the SPARTANs needed. The other members of Team Kopis were dead.
"Simon, get her into the Pelican!" ordered Jake as he resumed firing at the Covenant.
Simon flinched as another explosion destroyed the turf near his position. "Why me?"
"She can't make it herself, she's wiped out. I need you to get her on board safely, so move!"
Muttering private protests, Simon sprinted over to where Jake had taken cover and grabbed Cassandra. Flinching at every enemy shot that flew near him, he half carried, half dragged the limp SPARTAN towards the Pelican's troop bay. The copilot was still on the chaingun, blazing away as fast as the gun would fire. It was only when he stopped to lift her on board that Cassandra snapped out of her stupor and began to struggle.
"Vincent! Vincent!"
----
The Covenant fired down the waterfall towards the place they had last seen the Demon fall. They were furious at the deaths of their comrades and were eager to make sure that the one who had killed so many was dead. After about half a minute of nonstop firing, they turned and ran towards where their fellows were having trouble with some human dropships.
----
Fighting to control the thrashing and screaming Cassandra, Simon gritted his teeth. He was seriously beginning to consider letting her go and allowing the Covenant to blow her away. "Do you want to get both of us killed!" he yelled over the noise of the chaingun, which suddenly stopped as the copilot leaned down to help him hustle her on board. As the man returned to firing, Simon radioed Jake. "She seems to think that Vincent's still alive. You getting any reading on the biocom?
There was a pause, and Simon spent the next few moments practically sitting on top of Cassandra, weathering her blows and pleas to be released. Then Jake's voice sounded, and it seemed older than Simon had ever imagined possible. "Nothing. He's gone, and Joshua's getting antsy. We need to get out of here now."
Upon hearing Jake's pronouncement, Cassandra slackened and fell limp once more. Being careful not to expose himself more than absolutely necessary, Simon propped her up into a seat next to his. Both Jian and Xiphos were retreating now, retreating but still firing at the ever-present Covenant. They loaded onto the Pelican and the troop bay slid closed, forever hiding the scene of the jungle and the Covenant.
----
The copilot leaned over and plucked a black box from the surviving member of Team Kopis. This must be the probe's onboard computer, the one the squad had been sent in to retrieve.
The copilot was an ONI man, as were all those who officially came into contact with the SPARTAN-IIIs. He had done his job and followed his orders to the letter for almost ten years now. But something inside him made him hate that box, and some primal instinct made him wish to smash the vile thing against the troop bay's floor. As he headed back into the cockpit, he wondered why four children had had to die over a few star records and astronomical observations.
----
Simon didn't know whether to feel relieved that he had gotten through another battle without trouble or horrible over the loss of Kopis. He was about to settle on relived when a hand seized his arm and held it like a vice.
It was Cassandra. She was clinging to his arm and staring straight ahead. As the pressure began to feel painful, Simon tried unsuccessfully to shake it off. Cassandra's eyes were leaking tears, but no sounds were coming from her mouth or throat. Simon gave up trying to free himself and let her hold on for as long as she needed. She didn't let go until the Pelican docked and the SPARTANs were unloaded.
Simon had lost all faith in the UNSC when he had deduced that he and his comrades were meant to die in the line of duty, and the events of today had certainly supported his discovery. But he had never in all his life hated the UNSC as much as he did as he stared at the silent and trembling girl's tearstained face.
===Epilogue===
Step after step.
Foot before foot.
Vincent limped through the jungle in his ruined armor, clutching at his mangled right arm. There were open wounds all over his body, and he knew that he would be dead soon. But he preferred to end life walking rather than lie in the dirt and wait to bleed out.
After he had fallen off the waterfall, a loose rock had protected him from most of the Covenant fire that had come down after him. He had waited until they had left before getting up to walk the rest of his life away.
He had failed in his responsibility. He had gotten three of his friends killed, friends who had put their faith in him as a leader. His plan had been flawed, and he and his teammates had paid for it. He should have told Cassandra that before he had gone off: she wasn't the responsible one, he was. As team leader, it was his duty to see that all of the soldiers under his command got out safely.
Unless it couldn't have been helped. Unless it had all been chance. If less Covenant troops had been deployed, then Kopis would have been able to get the computer without incident. And if another team had been chosen for the task, then it would have been that other team that got destroyed and not Kopis.
He was so tired...
Vincent leaned against a tree trunk, panting like a dog. Hearing the engine of a Pelican, he looked up to see two of the dropships soaring into space. If Cassandra hadn't made it, they'd be helping Jian and Wolf look for the computer instead of leaving. That meant that Cassandra had made it, that she was alive and had delivered the computer.
A smile formed along Vincent's blood spattered lips.
"We win," he told the Covenant who could not see or hear him. Then his heart gave out, and he crashed to the jungle floor and moved no more.
Mission accomplished.
----
The one called Jake was doing his best to make her feel at home with her new team, but Cassandra couldn't appreciate that. Her friends, the people she had grown up with and trained with, were gone forever.
The one called Ralph was cleaning his sidearm. The one called Mary was taking a nap. The one called Terrence was reading a book, and the one called Simon was writing something in a notebook. Her new squad, completely different from Kopis.
She knew that she would have to get over it soon. None of the others would have liked to see her lost in despair when there was still work to be done. But for now she could mourn her friends, and she could remember them forever. Soon she would grit her teeth and fully become a member of Team Jian, but until soon became now her mind would always be back in the jungle where the four other members of Fire Team Kopis had died.