KIMBERLY

	The sandstorm was loud and blinding, the red and yellow wind whipping against my Harrier's manascope and interfering with my radio. There must have been some kind of magic on the winds. I tried my best to locate the others through the sand and the dust to no avail.
	I could just make out the frames of their MUTTs, but everyone was moving and soon enough I would lose them again. I heard static voices broken up by the interference, my best guess was their request for orders or at least a guess where the enemy was. I heard thunder booming outside, some kind of atmospheric phenomenon before I felt someone grab onto my Harrier and give a gentle shake.
	“Cap… we… fall ba…!” It must have been James. He was closest to me before the storm hit. As the dust cloud continued to pass around us, the visibility of my manascope began to stabilize and I could make out his Harrier. I looked to my left and noticed the red glow of beam fire. Garth was firing wildly into the cloud, thankfully towards the front and not back at us. I could see something else in the storm, the monster from before, its body revealed to me by the dust coating its hide. 
	Though its features were obscured, its frame dwarfed the dingo before it, its arms bulky with long claws, its legs thick with scaled musculature. As I moved in closer I saw what I thought at first were teeth, only to realize that it was a pointed beak with serrations. A plumage of feathers danced along its back within the sandstorm, reflecting it like a mirror. I realized its body was perfectly suited for these types of conditions, whatever it was it had adapted to this environment.
	Somehow it had evaded Garth in a slithering fashion like a four-limbed serpent and had gotten around him, and before I could react it slashed its claw through the back of his MUTT. A moment later it drove its massive beak through the machine and by the crimson coating its face, there was no doubt in my mind that it had killed him, all within seconds. I didn’t want to see what was left of him. The monster dropped the shell of a MUTT, twitching its head in search of another victim to sate its hunger.
	I shoved James back, igniting my torch on that damned thing, my flame twisting and whipping back and forth as the wind danced with it. I saw the beast turn in time to see my flames coming, but not in time to dodge before it, too, was consumed. Its brief shriek could be heard over the storm for only a moment before the hellfire of my torch cooked it inside and out. I saw the sparkling sands before me turning to glass, the ground beneath the beast melting and cracking until it was a charred carcass upon a shattered mirror.
	I had no words for the anger I felt. I turned back to James who's vision had apparently adjusted like mine and he saw the dead beast himself, shooting it with his aether rifle for good measure.
	The static in my radio continued as the storm blew more. Had we killed them all? Or was there one left? I didn't know, so I acted as if there were more. The goosebumps on my stone-speckled body were still there, so there must have been some truth to my assumption.
	They must have been the cause of that feeling from the start. Like a primal instinct. Was it because of that, or the aether? Did my birth defect have something to do with this? Was James feeling the same thing? It didn't matter. I turned to look beyond James to Eddie. I don't know where Quill was but I could see Eddie's Harrier. He had his bayonet out and evidently his vision had adjusted, too, because he had stuck the monster between the throat and its beak.
	Was that it? Was that the last of them? For a moment it seemed like it was over, but the monster knocked Eddie aside in an effort to escape the pain he had caused it. He hit the ground hard, the sand piling up around him and nearly burying him in place.
	The monster turned to face us, blood dripping from under its beak. I was hesitant to use my torch as that thing was standing over Eddie. He could still be alive, I thought. The flames would kill him for sure.
	Why didn't he shoot? No, that wasn't the right call, I knew that. If he was still alive he couldn't shoot it from that close anyway, it would kill him instantly in the blast of his spitfire. James would have to be the one to take the shot. It lunged at us, and I wasn't sure James would be quick enough to line up even a glancing shot.
	A red beam raced across from me, piercing the monster through one side of the chest out the other and it tumbled forward. It must have been Quill to my left. James and I scattered, the monster plowing through the dirt and sand beneath it. I turned back, my bayonet flashing for it as, although it had slowed down, it was still coming at me. I thrust the big knife into its shoulder, feeling it connect, only for it to claw my arm off a moment later.
	Where was James? Could I use my torch? I had to!
	Without another thought, I pulled the trigger as hard as I could, the flames engulfing the monster from below. I swore I could hear the plastic coating over the trigger cracking beneath my metal fingers. Its beak came down and I dodged to the right, protecting myself and my remaining arm.
	My chassis screeched as the metal was twisted and torn, sand and sparks blowing across my face as the beak blew through my armor even at a glancing blow. It tried to crush me with its arms, it tried to shriek but nothing came out, its breath stolen away by the fire before another beam pierced through its head from the side and it slumped over, unmistakably dead. James had killed it.
	I lost track of time for a while, all I could focus on was my breath. The sound of my inhaling and exhaling in my ears and finally the sound of the storm outside. Dust came up into my cockpit and I covered my face. I took off my helmet, hearing the wind whipping up through the hole I could now see where that monster had very nearly killed me, too. My heart was beating faster and harder than before, pounding in my ears. The hole went from the front left to the hip of my Harrier, nearly big enough for me to fit out of. What the hell was this thing? I finally caught my breath.
	“Captain!” I barely heard James shouting from his cockpit, “Are you okay?!”
	I waved the arm of my Harrier before putting my helmet and visor back on. I didn't even want to talk with all the sand blowing inside my cockpit like a wind tunnel.
	After everything that had just happened, I didn't even know if I could. What could I even say? I turned my chassis and attempted to cover the hole using my Harrier's remaining arm with little success. It wasn't that important now anyway, right now I had to look for Eddie.
	But I didn't know which way he was, the fight had me turned around. I moved slowly, trying to retrace my steps when I found Garth's Dingo, disemboweled with metal and wires and blood spilling out from either side. Quill was there beside it in his own MUTT, his aether rifle hissing even now, the body of the one that got Garth had been peppered with a dozen or so new holes. The eye of his Dingo stared blankly at the remains of his squadmate, and somehow I knew exactly what he was thinking.
	I could hear the footsteps of another approaching us, had we missed one? I turned, about to ignite my torch when I realized it was Jackie. He came running, his Dingo stopping just short of Garth's. At once he popped his hatch, crying out as he ran through the sand to his now deceased squadmate. He screamed, he raged, he yelled out every curse I had ever heard and even some I hadn't. He punched the machine and shook it with all his might and screamed against the wind.
	And we just stood there. Quill, James and I silently stood beside him, looking over the broken machine.

	Hours passed when the dust storm finally lifted, moving off through the jungle Oasis before disappearing within the greens.
	Jackie sat against the broken Dingo, completely coated head to toe with the red and yellow dust. His eyes were red and puffy, his skin raw from the storm. He didn't seem to care. He kept staring into the cockpit in total disbelief.
	“Are the radios working again?” I heard Tiggs in my ear.
	“We read you,” I answered slowly.
	“Kim! Thank Christ, we lost track of you for hours! Carter lost consciousness a few times trying to divine you guys through the storm and the radios… well, you probably already know about that.”
	“How is he?”
	“He's fine, how the hell are you guys?”
	I felt a pit in my stomach, “We lost Garth,” I answered.
	“Oh… shit. I'm bringing the truck over. I can see the others with you but, where's Eddie?”
	“I don't know where Eddie is.”
	“Hold on, I'll find him. I can see him on the periscope, his Harrier is about sixty yards out behind you,” He answered.
	“Let's go get him,” I said to James, who silently nodded his Harrier. I went off in search of Eddie, James following close behind. My MUTT seemed to groan in protest, almost as if every step caused it pain. It didn't take too long to find Eddie, he wasn't that far from us like Tiggs had said. I could just make out his MUTT half-buried in the storm, his arms locked up beside him in the sand and a dent in his chassis. 
	I linked my arm with his and James took the other, and together we pulled him out. I got out of my MUTT and opened the front hatch to him, the sand pouring off the machine in mounds. Inside his cockpit, Eddie was out, a bruise on the side of his bald head. He must have been knocked out when he was batted away, or at least I hoped that was all. I took a flashlight from one of the pouches on my belt and gently opened his eyes, shining a light into them for a brief moment, just enough to watch them contract. He was alive. Probably concussed.
	“James?” I called out to him, “Get Tiggs to bring the truck over here first, I'm gonna need help getting Eddie out.”
	James didn't waste any time radioing it in, and soon enough the support truck hovered over, setting down beside us.
	Jackie was still sitting next to what was left of Garth's Dingo when Carter, Tiggs, James and I all managed to pull Eddie out of his cockpit and carry him into the truck. We carefully set him down on the bottom bunk and I let Carter look him over. 
	He was our commander and diviner, but he also had studied necromancy for its potent healing magicks – I remember he called it being a chirurgeon the last time he had to patch me up. I looked at my arm and sighed. Whatever it was, it saved my life, so I was confident that Eddie would be fine.
	“Here,” Tiggs said, handing Carter a blue bottle. I assumed it was some kind of alcohol, and he downed half of it quickly before gasping.
	“You're gonna need it if we want any hope of fixin’ up what's left of Kim's Harrier,” Tiggs continued.
	Carter eyed the beer for a moment and set it down. In my memory I could still vividly taste the weird, saltiness that the blue bottle contained the last time I had drank one as a dare. Mana salt, the two had explained, good for a wizard but just awful for anyone else. It made for an even more potent means of refreshing a mage's mana reserves, or so I was told. Nasty stuff.
	I shook my head, “Forget about that, I'll just use Eddie's until he's back on his feet. We can fix mine when we get back to New Vaelyn.” 
	There was no sense in him wasting mana on some transmutation spells, the best he could do out here by himself was fix some minor damage in hard to reach places. I was missing a good chunk of my chassis and we still needed a diviner who was at least half sober if we wanted to make it back to headquarters. 
	“We should start heading back then,” Tiggs suggested, “No sense in wasting time waiting around with our rations running low. We only have three days worth.” 
	“It shouldn’t take us more than a day or two to get back to New Vaelyn,” Carter said, looking to me for my thoughts.
	“I don’t know if we can make that trip in that time, Commander,” I said bluntly, “We’re down a man and two MUTTs, morale’s taken a nosedive and frankly I don’t know if there are more of those things out there.”
	“All the more reason we need to get moving,” He said, his opinion on the matter bolstered by my warning.
	“We need to rest,” James said to Carter, his eyes dark from our sleepless night and fighting, “Those two aren’t prepared for that kind of march, not in their shape. Give us some time to get back on our feet, we’re gonna need it anyway if we want to set up a rig for us to carry the Captain’s MUTT back with us, and Garth’s so they can…” He didn't bother saying it, we all knew what he meant. We had to take him back, I'd have wanted someone to do the same for us.
	Carter thought it over for a moment, his eyes closed as he took a deep breath, “Alright. You have one hour. After that, get everything ready to move, we’ll do a half-march today and go the rest of the distance tomorrow. Tiggs, go help them out, they’re gonna need it.”
	That really meant I had one hour to get everyone ready to move again. I nodded, James and I leaving the truck with Tiggs hurrying behind us. I looked over to Jackie and Quill, both of them standing beside what was left of their friend. They glanced up at us, a mix of anger and sorrow written all over their faces. I quickly realized getting the MUTTs out of here was the easy part. The hard part was going to be those two.

	While I was adjusting Eddie’s Harrier cockpit to my liking, Tiggs had set up a winch on the balancer on the front that would make carrying my old MUTT easier. Well, maybe not easier, but it would at least free up my arms if something were to happen. I looked through the manascope and made a few final adjustments to the spitfire, tightening the muzzle for more concentrated fireballs with a tighter grouping. It would be more accurate at longer range, the tradeoff being fewer shots as well as a bigger blast radius, making it more dangerous to fire at the minimum range. I figured if we spotted the Federalists out here it would be at a longer distance and I would need a better shot.
	Thankfully besides my adjustments we still had at least two riders capable of long range. Well, we had one, assuming I couldn’t get Jackie back in fighting condition. We also had nothing in case we were pushed into close combat, which didn't sit well with me, and I considered the thought of having my torch on my left hand as a backup.
	“Lower your MUTT!” I heard Tiggs shout from the outside through my open hatch. James was helping him get my busted Harrier into position, a long and thick chain wrapped over its waist, chest and remaining shoulder several times over. The damage looked a lot worse from the outside. Was it even going to be worth the trouble? I knelt down, letting Tiggs climb up the front to the winch where he ran the chain he had designed for this occasion. It forked in four directions, over and under both shoulders of Eddie’s Harrier while the center had a single chain with a quick release system on the end. He hooked that into the winch and waved his arms to get my attention.
	“This is the emergency release,” He shouted, “Pull this cable and it will release the chains from the winch,“ He explained, holding up his fingers in a cross shape to show me, “Once they’re released, these chains will pop off either side of you like a whip, so keep your arms forward so you don’t lose ‘em!” He threw his hands to either side as an extra little demonstration.
	“Got it,” I answered, waiting for him to connect the four chains to my old Harrier.
	“You’re awfully lucky,” Tiggs said as he climbed up over to my hatch and looked inside, “I never saw damage like this on the MUTTs back in Mexico. Those things shred right through the armor. Thank God you’re still in one piece.”
	I lifted my visor and stared at the gremlin poking his head into my cockpit, “Tiggs, just get this thing hooked up. And don’t talk about that shit until we get back to the Lucerne, alright?” I pointed in the direction where I knew Jackie and Quill stood only fifty yards from where we were. 
	Tiggs looked back for a split second before turning back to me, “Shit. Sorry, Captain, won’t happen again,” He said before picking himself up and getting back to work. I decided they had it from here, now came the hard part. I lifted myself up and climbed out of the front hatch, steeling myself before heading over to Jackie and Quill.
	The two stared at me all the way up until I stopped on the other side of Garth’s Dingo.
	I stood silently, studying their faces contorted in anger for a moment before I forced myself to look inside the wreck. There was blood and viscera all over the controls, staining the seat, covering the dead machine’s insides. Somehow against all odds there was a single hand still gripping the trigger for the right arm’s control. There was a metallic smell mixed with flesh left out in the sun that made my stomach churn, but I kept a stern expression on my face and forced the bile back down.
	I tried to think of a way to break the silence, my mind coming up blank. What do you even say to someone who just lost a friend? I looked at the two of them who looked back at me expectantly.
	“We can help take him back to be buried,” I said finally, “We won’t just leave him out here to rot.”
	That seemed to ease Jackie’s worries, but Quill was still glaring at me. He turned and went back to his Dingo without a word while Jackie, still filthy from the dust, looked back to the cockpit.
	“I just can’t believe he’s really gone,” He said, finally breaking his own silence. “We lost a lot of good folks over the years, on both sides of the war. We all have. Before we even took this mission, Garth heard his brother died during the attack on New Vaelyn,” He looked to me, his eyes shimmering with tears yet to drop, “He died fighting for the Federalists. We killed his brother. It might not have been us, but we took part in it. Now his family has no more sons,” He let the tears fall, his face twisting up as he turned away from me, “I led him out here to die!”
	“I won't tell you not to mourn, Jackie, but you and Quill are still alive. You have to pull it together, at least until we make it back to New Vaelyn,” I told him, putting my hand on his shoulder. It was a reflex, I hadn't intended to do that, and it was even the fake hand. Jackie didn't seem to care though, he just nodded, his breath quivering as he sharply sucked in air.
	“And before you go blaming yourself for this, it isn't anyone's fault, and it sure as hell isn't yours. At the very least we got the thing that did it to him,” That was the best I could offer as a consolation.
	“Burrunjor,” He said between breaths.
	“What?”
	“That was the thing that got him. They're called Burrunjor,” He said, wiping the dust and tears from his face, “I always heard about them when I was growing up, everyone always said the jungle brought them out, that the Burrunjor lived in the Oasis. Even when I was with the Brekkies I never once saw them, but the soldiers would always talk about how their platoon got attacked by one and how it dragged one of their MUTTs away. The government always warned people to stay away from the Oasis…”
	“It must have been hunting them like they hunted us,” I surmised.
	“The thing is there was only ever one of them, and it never came after them when they left the Oasis.”
	“Maybe something changed? Those four seemed to be starving,” I pointed out, the corpse of the one I had burnt up only a dozen yards away. The belly looked bloated compared to the rest of it, and Jackie nodded after seeing it himself.
	He shuddered, “That explains why they followed us out here… I'd hate to think what would have happened if you yanks weren't with us.”
	I nodded, “Listen, we're gonna move out soon, it's only going to be a half-day's march. We'll get some food and rest at the next stop, are you and Quill going to be alright?”
	“We'll make it. We have to,” He answered. That was good enough as far as I was concerned.
	“I'll have Tiggs figure out a way to transport him,” I said, nodding towards Garth, “Do you want one of us to carry him?”
	“No. I'll do it,” Jackie quickly answered, “It's the least I can do for him, now.” 
	I shook him gently by the shoulder before turning back to my own MUTT. Tiggs had just finished the rig and was clapping the dust off of his gloves, “What about your mate, Eddie?” Jackie asked, “Did he…?”
	I hesitated for a moment, hoping that my answer didn't twist the knife in his gut, “He'll be fine,” I answered, checking my watch, “We move out in about twenty minutes.” I didn't want him to dwell on it, not when he was up and moving again. I wasn't heartless, I told myself, he would have time to grieve once we made it back.
	“Why don't you go see Carter and get yourself cleaned off?” I said, “He can spare some mana for that.”
	“No,” Jackie answered, “I'll worry about that after the job's done.”
	I shrugged and shook my head, “I won't argue. I'll have Tiggs come over right away,” I said, heading for the gremlin. I saw James standing on top of his Harrier. He looked exhausted. I didn't feel much better.
	“She's all ready for ya,” Said Tiggs, slapping the knee of Eddie's Harrier. I silently thanked him with a nod and pointed a thumb back to Jackie.
	“Need you to set a rig up for them, too.”
	“I'll see what I can do,” The gremlin replied with a grimace, “Oh and James found your other arm for ya, stuck it through the chain on the backside so we don't lose it again.”
	I rolled my eyes, “Fine. But let’s get moving out sooner rather than later,” Silently, he gave me a single thumbs up as he hurried to the humans’ MUTTs.
	James took a moment to dig around in one of his pockets where he found his pack of cigarettes. He opened it up and found only one left. With a heavy sigh, he took it and hung it in his lip while he looked for his lighter.
“Captain,” He said, meeting my eyes, “If one of us ends up like that, promise me you won't blame yourself,” I stared at him, wondering how I would take it if that were to happen. I watched him rifle through his pockets again before he finally found the lighter with a weak smile.
	“I won't let it come to that,” I said, more to myself than for him to hear. He lit his smoke and inhaled it, tasting it for a moment before exhaling.
	“I'd rest easy knowin’ you would be able to move on with your life. I got enough to worry about out here without havin’ to worry about you crackin' if Eddie or I bite it.”
	“Just shut up and get ready to move, or I'll kill your ass myself,” I said, trying my best to bring some levity to our situation. I rummaged through my own pockets and pulled out the pack of cigarettes from my last ration, still unopened. I tossed it to him and he fumbled it for a moment before snatching it.
	He sighed and jumped back into his Harrier, “Yeah, yeah. Good talk, Captain. Thanks.”
	I exhaled sharply, climbing into Eddie's MUTT. Standing it up was slower than usual and might have been a challenge if the balancer wasn't doing such a good job compensating for me. Still, with nearly double the weight, it felt sluggish. This was going to be a long march.

	It took us three hours before we took a short break in our march and another three just to get where we were planning on stopping for the day. For the time it was silent, but for the wind I could hear blowing past us. We all were completely worn out and just didn't feel like wasting energy talking. James found a tiny outcropping just large enough to act as a windbreak while we rested and I led us to it.
	Rations were handed out with everyone silently preparing their own food. I opted to take the first watch so everyone else could get some sleep, not allowing either of the two remaining riders from Landfall to argue. They needed the rest more than me. I stared out into the desert, wondering how Oceana Venture was going to react to a couple of mercs returning in defeat. I felt as though we had been set up for failure, as if this was some stupid scheme to get back at us for voicing our dissenting opinions.
	I thought about Garth and what Jackie told me about his brother. He was on the enemy's side. Why? Maybe he still believed in the Federalists, or maybe he was just misguided. Hell, his family could have wanted him to stay so they would have a chance that one of them would survive - or maybe they never knew Garth had deserted the ‘Brekkies’ for another cause. The same things had happened in Mexico, and in several wars before that. It was nothing new, but it still stung hearing about it.
	I shook the thoughts from my mind, going back to watching the wind dance across the sands. I saw dust devils twirling their short lives away before a gust would come through and they would die down, only to start up again. Time passed and soon enough I heard James’ voice on my radio.
	“Go get some sleep, Captain,” He said, his voice sounding a little more energetic than before. Good. Now it was my turn to get some rest.
	Our camp was small but it at least had some shade, someone had hung a tarp off the rocks and had made a makeshift awning. No one bothered setting up their tents, Quill and Jackie were using their packs as cushions to prop their backs up and off the ground and rest their heads on their bedrolls. 
	I turned and went for the truck, opening the door as quietly as I could. I had to check on Eddie before I could rest easy. He was still in the bed, Carter looking over him. He had the gargoyle's amulet in his hand, allowing Eddie's body to turn to stone for better rest. I knew that was natural for gargoyles like us, but since neither James nor I could do it due to our condition, it always seemed so strange and foreign to me. Tiggs was asleep in the top bunk. He needed it as much as any of us for the amount of work he'd been putting in, between the riggings, the truck, the periscope and making sure Carter was taken care of he had a lot on his own plate.
	“How is he?” I said, little more than a whisper. Carter looked up at me and sighed.
	“He's fine. He's just gonna need some time. I've already patched him up, now the ball's in his court.”
	I nodded, “What about you?”
	“I'm fine. I checked on everything only a minute ago and there's nothing, no mana spikes, no aether, no surprises.”
	“I hope you're right.”
	“Don't worry, I got this. Go get some rest, you look terrible,” He said, shooing me away with a handwave.
	I wasn't about to argue. I found myself back out under the awning, grabbing my gear and taking a spot opposite of Quill and Jackie. I noticed Jackie had wiped his face clean, and both he and Quill had cloths over their mouths and noses to keep out the dust. I followed their example, digging a bandana out of my pack and wrapping it around my face. Somehow, despite the heat, the dust and the situation I managed to quickly fall asleep. 

	I was dreaming. I had to be. I was in an older MUTT, I couldn’t remember the make, I think it was one of Harrier Heavy Industries’ first models, a Snipe or Heron or whatever they called it, barely any bigger than the Wagon. All I could see from the cockpit was the hole that had been torn through the chassis on my right. I couldn’t move my body, it hurt too much, and the pain was so great I thought I was going to die. I looked down at the source of my pain, a piercing sensation on my arm. When I looked down, I saw that it was gone.
	The skin on my shoulder had been torn horribly and the flesh had attempted to scab over the wound with stone where my arm had been only moments ago. It had been sheared off by some kind of new weapon – no, by an old weapon. I thought it had only grazed me, but I must have been too slow to dodge it. I could hear someone yelling something in Spanish. Were they yelling for me? Or was it the enemy? I couldn’t think clearly. My arm was still bleeding, and I felt cold.

	I came to, feeling a cold sweat come over me. I wasn’t sure how long I had slept, but it was dark now. I hadn’t had that dream in a long time and it had only exhausted me further. Now I was in a foul mood, and I knew it was going to get worse due to the shouting I was hearing. I roused myself, trying to quickly figure out what was going on. Were we under attack? My heart skipped a beat, was it more of those Burrunjor things?
	No. We’d probably already be dead if it was. Our MUTTs were still grouped together and I saw no aether fire. Jackie and Quill were absent from their places beneath the awning. Probably a stupid argument, I assumed, until the shouting got louder and more explicit. The sounds of a fight breaking out soon followed. I was on my feet and rushing over to the noise. It was coming from the other side of the truck.
	I could make out some of the voices, James and Jackie mostly. I saw Tiggs standing at the back of the truck watching whatever was going on. The goblinoid had his arms folded. As I passed him I saw him rolling his eyes, “Those idiots,” He muttered to himself. When I rounded the corner James and Quill were at each others' throats, both red in the face with Jackie trying to break them up with less than ideal results. James threw a punch at the taller man, which Quill grabbed and used to toss him over his shoulder.
	I watched the smaller gargoyle turn, using his wings to redirect himself midair and land a whip from his tail across the man’s face. Quill growled, blood dripping from his lip. He was about to rush James when Jackie grabbed him from behind, restraining him.
	“Stop it, Quill!” Jackie shouted, fighting to hold onto his squadmate. Quill was bigger than him, and he easily broke out of his hold and kicked Jackie’s feet out from under him.
	He pointed a finger at James, who was still ready to fight, “We’ve been getting the shit rations this whole time! They gorge themselves on the good stuff and we get their scraps!”
	“You’re lucky you got any rations from us at all!” James shouted, “Anybody else would’ve let you starve and you know it!”
	“Garth is dead because of little shits like you!” Quill went for a punch, but James quickly dodged it, knocking him off balance with a kick. I rushed in and rammed my shoulder into the Scot, putting him on his ass. James was about to go in for more before I grabbed him by the shoulder and threw him against the truck.
	“What the hell are you doing?!” I shouted at both of them, “Cut the shit, we don’t have the luxury to try and kill each other out here!”
	“That’s rich coming from you!” Quill bellowed back from the dirt, “Your boy is just fine and Garth is dead! And who’s fault is that?!”
	“Right now I don’t give a shit!” I shouted, “The enemy could be out there, there could be more of those monsters and you’re wasting your energy picking a fight with us? You got a problem with us? Save it for when we get back to New Vaelyn!”
	Quill clenched his teeth so hard I could see his veins popping. He scrambled to his feet, going right for me before James swooped in and grabbed him from behind. He leapt onto Quill's back and pulled his arms into a full nelson and his boots pushed on the back of his larger counterpart’s knees, forcing him down into the dirt again with a scream.
	I watched as Quill struggled under James, attempting to turn him over, but James locked his legs around his own and pulled hard. The Scot pulled harder, slamming the back of his head into James’ nose and knocking him off so he could turn over. I reached down and grabbed him, the metal hand of my fake arm clenching around his throat before I threw my weight down on his chest with my knee. James clambered to his feet and got away from Quill, standing back.
	“If you don’t stop, I’ll crush your windpipe,” I threatened, “Then you can tell Garth you died out here for nothing, like a stupid asshole.”
	Quill’s eyes could have bored a hole through mine with how hard he was glaring up at me. He glanced at Jackie, who shook his head and turned away.
	“That’s enough, Quill,” Jackie said, “Let him go, Kim. We’ll leave ahead of you and find our own way back to New Vaelyn.”
	“Are you serious?” Said James, rubbing his nose before blowing blood out of it, “You could die out there alone.”
	“We could die fighting each other, too,” He pointed out, “I know which way to go, at least this way we won’t do one another in. We’ll leave straight away.”
	I looked down at Quill, who looked back up at me, his eyes still full of rage.
	“I’m going to let you go. You try anything and you’re dead,” I hissed. He remained silent, slowly nodding once. I got off of his chest and released him, ready in case he got any stupid ideas while he picked himself up from the dirt.
	I waited for him to retreat back beside Jackie, who gave me a knowing look before they both headed for their MUTTs.
	As they passed Tiggs and the truck, the door opened and out came Carter, with Eddie beside him. He was back on his feet, and he towered over the two walking by.
	“Hold it,” Tiggs said, stopping Jackie and Quill. 
	Eddie stood silently beside the gremlin, holding two boxes in his arms.
	“The hell do you want?” Quill spat.
	Eddie said nothing, standing stock-still by the door of the truck for a moment before throwing the boxes to either of them. Both Jackie and Quill caught them, feeling the weight of them in their hands.
	“What's this?” Asked Jackie.
	“A day's worth of rations. Last thing we need is you idiots dying out there thinkin’ it’s somehow our fault,” Carter said.
	Tiggs furrowed his brow, “Don’t say we never did anything for ya, ya damned ingrates.”
	Jackie nodded, turning and giving Quill an elbow to move him along, but Quill stayed, glaring at Eddie.
	“Why do you get to live and Garth doesn't?” He growled. Eddie stood silently for a moment before he replied.
	“Fate, luck, call it whatever you want. No one knows when our time runs out, but out here people die all the time. If those things don't get us, the enemy might,” He pointed out to the desert, “We could die from the heat, freeze to death at night or starve out here. This war is no different from any other. There are always casualties.”
	“What the hell would a monster like you know,” Quill grumbled, “You've only been here less than a week! You haven't fought like we have!”
	Eddie was unfazed, “You're far from the only one who's lost someone in war. You should be happy that his death was quick. If you saw what I've seen in Mexico then you'd know how brutally someone can die in and out of battle.”
	Quill wasn't any happier hearing it, but after sizing up Eddie he turned and followed Jackie to their Dingos. It seemed like he had finally exhausted himself. We watched wordlessly as the Dingos came to life and stood up, Jackie's standing a little slower with Garth's MUTT rigged to his back. Quill left immediately, while Jackie turned back and gave us a quick salute before following after him. Both of them disappeared into the night, leaving the five of us standing by the truck.
	“We leave come sunrise,” Carter said, “Get some rest, Eddie will take the first watch.”
	“But he just got back on his feet!” James protested.
	“I want to,” Eddie interjected, putting a big hand on James’ shoulder, “I've had enough rest.”
	“Aren't you talkative tonight,” James said in return, “Fine, but I'm after him,” He looked at me.
	I didn't argue. I'd had enough of that for one day.

	The night passed without incident and we were all as rested as we could be before we headed out. The skies were red as the sun threatened to peek over the distant sands. I had given Eddie his Harrier back after Carter insisted he was in better shape than I was now, and so I took a spot in the truck as support, where I would be using the periscope and giving orders. It felt strange not being in a MUTT during operations. 
	I hated it, really, somehow I felt defenseless inside this twenty ton coffin. Tiggs would drive us ahead of the Harriers, park us behind cover and I would launch the periscope and check for anything before James and Eddie would follow up. We did this for a few hours, and I couldn't help but wonder how Jackie and Quill were doing. I hadn’t seen any aether activity, or much movement at all for that matter. Had they made it back to New Vaelyn alright, or were they lost or in trouble?
	“Come on, James, we’re not far now,” Tiggs said over the radio. I looked through the periscope, seeing James’ Harrier trudging up a particularly steep dune. Eddie steadied him with a free hand, and he did his best to climb up the shifting sands. It was a miracle at all that the MUTTs didn’t sink down beneath the dunes with how heavy they were. Finally James made it over, and to my relief they made it to the truck.
	“How much further do we have to go?” James panted.
	“Not far, only about…” Carter started, only for him to stop short. I looked at him, seeing a worried expression on his face. He was divining something that had clearly gotten his attention. I looked through the periscope, quickly spotting movement to the west.
	“Dust cloud, west, about a mile out. No aetheric activity,” I announced, “Take up positions.” 
	“I see active mana reactors. They’re heading north towards New Vaelyn,” Carter added.
	“Are they ours?” James asked.
	I saw Carter shake his head, “Not sure. Power down, keep out of sight, switch to local channels and maintain radio silence.”
	Whoever they were, they were likely to have an aether periscope same as us, and they might have already spotted us by now, but I didn’t bother arguing that point. If they were the enemy, maybe we were lucky and they missed us.
	“Can you see them yet?” Tiggs whispered, taking his place beside me at the console. He began listening in for any radio transmissions. I kept my eyes fixed on the dust cloud, which quickly became three. Three vehicles, two transport trucks big enough to carry at least four MUTTs each and a support hover truck like ours in Federalist blues.
	“Enemy convoy,” I replied, “They're really booking it.”
	“Listen to this,” Tiggs said, holding the headset up to my ear.
	“Just try to hold them off,” One of them said, “We'll be there in ten.”
	“They just picked off our gunner! Dammit, I can't spot them!”
	“How many of them are there?”
	“I don't know! They keep moving around!”
	I listened intently to the radio chatter between the transports. Someone was giving them hell. Was it Jackie and Quill? I looked to Carter, who now stood behind me and Tiggs.
	“We could follow them,” I suggested, “Hit them from behind while they're distracted.”
	“Or we get caught up in a bad situation and bite it out here,” He said, “There's only two of us capable of fighting.”
	“I'm confident they could do it.”
	“Yeah, and think of all the goods we could get to fix up our MUTTs,” Tiggs seconded me.
	“That would help with the repairs,” I added, “Might even snag some replacement weapons.”
	“We could use that gear, and spend what we earn on some rations instead of a whole new MUTT for Kim,” Tiggs continued, “Just a thought.”
	Carter frowned, “Fine. You wanna save the idiots, I get it.”
	He saw right through me, but I didn't care. I smiled, “You gotta admit, though, the pros outweigh the cons.”
	“If we don't die, first,” He sighed, “but it might be worth the risk. We're scouting it out before we jump in head first, got it?”
	I checked the periscope again, watching the convoy move on, “Now's the time to move.”
	“James, Eddie, it seems our friends got caught up fighting the Feddies further north, and this enemy convoy is about to join in on the fun so we're goin’ after them,” Carter said over the radio.
	 Tiggs went back to the driver's seat and fired up the engine, pulling us out of position. My two squadmates prepped their Harriers for pursuit, both of them moving ahead of us. 
	The two went off at a surprising speed, especially Eddie who was still carrying my busted MUTT. I reeled in the periscope, keeping it up just enough to keep my line of sight over them, while Tiggs gunned it, driving the truck behind the two Harriers. We were keeping pace when I heard the thundering explosion of aetheric artillery bombarding the grounds ahead.
	I took the headset and listened in, hearing the enemy chatter in one ear while I listened for any callouts from our team.
	“Keep shelling that ridge! I saw one of them duck behind it!”
	“Squad leader's down! Where's that backup?!”
	“We're two minutes out! I can see your Mule from here!”
	By some miracle, they hadn't noticed us, probably because they were in too much of a hurry to rescue their comrades. Big mistake, I thought, how hard was it to keep your head on a swivel? I continued to monitor the enemy.
	“Prepping the MUTTs now, any update on the enemy?”
	“There's definitely only two of them, I think we got one of them- AAH-”
	Static assaulted my ears as the unfortunate soul met the wrong end of a MUTT's rifle. I turned to Carter who gave a nod.
	I quickly tuned the headset to our local channel, “Alright boys, those transports are about to launch their MUTTs, so hit them with everything you got!”

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