Re: The Barracks Under Fire Story
by EagleRock
Chapter 15 – Stepping Towards the Light
Originally posted on August 29th, 2007
After EagleRock fell down, BRS rushed across the side street that came across the wine cellar exit. He had seen Phantom peek out of the doorway and instinctively grabbed a flashbang to blind him. Phantom fell back as he tried to clear his eyes. Shots from BRS’ AK47 sounded through the air as Phantom’s vision slowly returned. The shots kept coming closer, meaning his time was running out. The three remaining hostages were waiting behind Phantom, obediently waiting for his move.
Meanwhile, EagleRock reached the end of the long corridor that came from the hostage building only to find the alleyway there empty. He slowly crept along, gun hoisted, ready to peer into the marketplace area, the famous area where most battles in cs_italy took place. He didn’t see anyone, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there.
All of a sudden, a grenade flew over his head. EagleRock dove to the left, trying to get away from it as much as possible. Thankfully, the grenade had overshot his position and detonated away from him. He struggled to get up and rushed around to a back alley, entering the marketplace from another angle. From there, he saw Newgrundling hiding behind a cart of vegetables, aimed at the other entrance.
Just as Newgrundling saw EagleRock, he turned to shoot. Before he could, EagleRock shot at the vegetable cart, spraying vegetables all over the area, making it hard for either one to see.
Phantom’s vision was returning to him, but BRS was closing in. Phantom gritted his teeth and leaped over the ledge he was on and flew in the air towards BRS. He shot his TMP at BRS, which sprayed towards him, hitting him in the chest and head several times. As Phantom fell to the ground in a painful thud, he stood up and hovered over BRS’s body. As he shot one more bullet into BRS’s head, he said, “Not this time, asshole.” He then heard shots nearby of EagleRock’s AUG and an AK47.
He knew time was running out. Fighting the urge to assist Eagle, he ran as fast as he could towards the hostage rescue point, all three hostages behind. It was only a question of whether or not EagleRock could hold out.
Both Newgrundling and EagleRock were shooting at each other, neither one hitting the mark. The marketplace was strewn with splintered wood and food that covered the whole area. Both of them had exhausted their ammunition and had drawn pistols at that point. EagleRock’s Desert Eagle echoed loudly off of the stone walls and metal rooftops of the nearby homes, hitting all kinds of food, but not Newgrundling. By the time his seven shots were exhausted, Newgrundling had popped up from his cover, Glock in hand.
Just then, the loud foghorn sounded, indicating the match was over. Wade’s voice boomed, “The hostages have been rescued. Counter-Terrorists win!” EagleRock dropped to his knees in relief, dropping his pistol beside him. Newgrundling looked at him and lowered his weapon.
As EagleRock looked up at him, Newgrundling said, “You’re lucky…this time.”
EagleRock panted, “Why not just kill me now?”
“Even if I wanted to, I can’t.” He then stepped away from the mess they made and walked towards his teleportation pod, back at the hostage building. EagleRock looked at him as he walked by, wondering the implications of his words. He stood up to go back to his teleportation pod, but felt extreme pain. He was bleeding in several places, thanks to several gunshots he sustained. He knew that he’d pretty much be dead if he didn’t have the effects of the adrenaline shot in his body, but it couldn’t help stop the fatigue and pain he was feeling. He knew this was the second time that he avoided death. As he slowly walked back to the pods, he heard Wade’s ceremonial ending of the broadcast:
“Well, that’s about it for today, folks! The Elite Guards put in a good show as they tie up the match count, three to three! Tune in tomorrow for a special match to celebrate Clock Day! Wade Fulp…out!”
“So now he’s fucking Ryan Seacrest,” said Phantom, as Eagle approached. As the two returned to their fellow soldiers, they were greeted by many cheers and hurrahs. EagleRock, however, wasn’t happy.
“Dude,” said Supreme Commander LittleWashu, “you can’t be upset now. We took it to them like we needed to!”
“Yeah, but Viper’s dead.”
“He was brave,” she continued, “and he died for us. At least his death wasn’t in vain, as you got two of them and saved the hostages.”
“He was brave for sure,” said EagleRock. “I think it’s only fair that he gets the recognition he deserves, too. I’m posthumously promoting him to Sergeant, as he did too much for us out there to not be.”
“Agreed,” said Phantom. “He was a great soldier.”
“I’m just getting sick of all these promotions, though. I love promoting people, but not posthumously!”
“Well,” said Slash, “let’s get you fed and rested. You’re running yourself ragged, Eagle.”
“Okay,” he replied, “but we need to talk together. It’s important.”
“Over dinner, then,” said Slash. The twelve soldiers all went to the mess hall and consumed their meals. While the meals themselves were excellent as always, they somehow never satisfied the soldiers. After having their fill, EagleRock started to talk and mentioned his encounter with Newgrundling.
“Okay, look. This is a serious problem at this point. We know they want to kill us, but we need to know why.”
“…Why?” said Slash. “What difference does it make? If they’re trying to kill us, they’re trying to kill us.”
“Agreed,” said Phantom. “Personally, if they’re trying to shoot at me, I don’t contemplate why they were compelled to do so.”
“Still,” said Eagle, “this makes no sense. It’s not like we’re not doing what Wade wants us to do…in fact, we’re the best at holding up the values that he strives for!”
“Well,” said Slash, “maybe they’re not trying to kill us…maybe they’re trying to test us.”
“Test us?” Phantom stood up. “What kind of a test is this??”
“What if they’re trying to find the best of the best and empower them even more?”
“Then,” said EagleRock, “why kill us all, and why pit us against the moderators?”
“Maybe he’s trying to prune out the weaker of the group. And the moderators…maybe he’s trying to prune them too. You know how bad some of the mods are.”
“Yeah,” said Phantom, “but it’s not just the bad ones getting killed out there. And what’s up with Newgrundling saying he couldn’t kill Eagle if he wanted to?”
“I think the guns don’t work outside the playtime or something,” said Eagle.
“Maybe you’re right,” said Slash, “It might have something to do with this being a test. I can’t see Wade doing this for bad. For all we know, the survivors will be promoted to have all kinds of powers…mod status…ability to save or blam Portal entrants at will…getting stuff through the Portal without judgment!”
“What the hell are you talking about?” said Eagle. “What good would that do for Newgrounds? That’s just way too much power that no one needs.”
“Still,” said Slash. “Don’t you wish you had more power sometimes? Don’t you wish you could control the Portal at will and have people do whatever you want?”
“First off, no,” said Eagle. “That’s power run rampant…it’ll only corrupt you. And you can get that kind of power if you want…it requires hard work and respect from others.”
“Oh, don’t get so pious on me. All the shit you did so far and people shit still gets through the Portal. What the hell do you expect…people to just give up a chance at getting promoted to do the right thing?”
“Ugh,” said Phantom. “We went over this shit already. If we all vote fairly with our enhanced voting power, we’ll overpower those rouge groups. The Portal would stop being corrupt…simply because credit would turn to those voting fairly!”
“Anyway,” said Eagle, “it still doesn’t make sense. All I know is Clock Day is tomorrow, and some of the best soldiers in Newgrounds are not going to be out their protecting the Portal. I just wished I knew why.”
“Whatever,” said Slash. “I’m going to bed.” He and the other soldiers retired to get some sleep before tomorrow’s match.
Little did they know that the night wasn’t over yet.
End of Chapter 15