Opening fire

A majority of the company was stationed within cardboards that held advantageous positions. There were four boxes in total, each holding a platoon. Three facing towards the front of the pull-down, with two gun cars stationed in between. The last box faced the rear, meant to shoot the Tan's asses while they went up. They had their own car too, off more to the side.

The pull-down was essentially surrounded by green guns.

But would it be enough?

The Green's sure hoped so.

Sayke was in the center box while Flynn was in the right and Ostrander to the left.

Miller, with a platoon of exceptional marksman, was stationed in the far off box.

As for the Captain, he was with the auxilliary platoon, who were meant to reinforce the positions, in the back.

Everyone waited silently, their guns pointed towards the only entrance to the attic. Many had carved gun holes through the cardboard, others were simply atop the boxes. Markus was one of the former.

The green man watched through the hole he carved, big enough for the part of his gun muzzle to fit along with some room to look out. Due to the distance they would be engaging at, he was currently using a rifle, a gun he wasn't proficient in. Though he had a shotgun slung on his shoulder. Boxed in with him was the rest of the platoon Flynn headed in the past game. Their Lieutenant was currently receiving orders from a backpack radio. His cigarette long gone cold.

Eyes focused, near straining, he was ready to engage the enemy.

Minutes passed with more and more Green's averting their eyes and blinking away the coming headache's. Markus was one of them.

When was the assault coming?!?

Many were mentally complaining when it finally happened.

The pull-down dropped down with no warning. It's bottom pounding into the ground and striking it like thunder.

*BTOO*

The ground shook a bit.

Many were wide eyed and others were speechless. Markus was both. He didn't know what to think but subconsciously he raised his weapon and aimed down it's sights.

A few moments went by as movement could be heard below. This frayed many nerves. The anticipation added to the already tense and suspenseful atmosphere. Many forgot to breathe. Markus was one of them. His mind slowly breaking down under the pressure that was building.

More and more time passed before...

Something came flying.

No one knew what it was but many started trying to shoot it down.

They failed.

It soared through the air and as if time slowed, Markus' eyes followed it as it flew. His eyes went wide as he recognized the glassy, see through surface, the liquid that was housed inside and the... the flaming cloth stuffed into it.

A Molotov cocktail.

He screamed out a warning with all he had.

"MOLOTOV!"

His voice carried throughout the silent attic, most heard him.

Uncaring for their concern, the Molotov eventually struck the ground and shattered over to the left.

Ostrander's area.

Within moments, a sea of flames and heated glass sprouted and spread further, engulfing everything near it.

It didn't take long for the nearby box to catch it's attention.

As Markus was about to run out and attempt to help his fellow platoon, a shot rang out.

*Bang*

Yelling followed, with Sayke's box being the source.

In those moments of distraction caused by the fire and flame, the Tan's had come up.

Then the command was given.

"OPEN FIRE!"

The Green's wall of guns yelled back with bullets.

The fight began in earnest.

Looking down his gun sights, Markus confirmed the enemies color to be Tan.

Taking aim, he found his target, a Tan soldier who popped their head up.

He pulled the trigger and the soldier lost their brain housing.

It was his first kill.

And he wanted another one.

A bloodlust washed over him, demanding him to take more Tan lives.

Who was he to not obey his basic needs?

Switching to a new target, a man on a machine gun laying down suppressive fire on Sayke's box. They somehow managed to setup away front the stairs.

Being too absorbed in their task, they were oblivious of the incoming danger.

Markus took the opportunity and shot them down.

Their friends noticed his death and quickly sourced his killer.

A hail of bullets came towards Markus' position.

He ducked but forgot to warn the other's.

A Green man behind him got his neck shot, gouging part of it out. He died as he hit the ground and his head separated from his body, a look of surprise on his face.

Guilt Welled up within Markus but now wasn't the time to regret.

He looked back at his gun hole and found that it grew bigger, that and the continuous bullets flying through and around it.

He let out a sigh and went to carve a new one, more work needed to be done.

_

Overall, the situation wasn't going well for the Green's.

The Tan's opened with a mighty blow, taking out an entire green platoon without a single casualty.

Ostrander's box was still ablaze, forcing the unit to reposition and move the wounded.

Many of them now suffered partially melted limbs. This included their hands, feet, arms and even torsos.

The Tan's pushed their advantage.

Having taken out the left, or right to them, they almost entirely ignored it, and focused their attention on the two other boxes.

They would've rushed the Greens entirely if it weren't for their rear constantly being pecked at. That and the gun car's.

On Miller's side, he was chipping away at the attackers, scoring many easy kills, though at the expense of his comrades.

The Green's were holding for now, though they had nothing to shake up the board.

Eventually, the Tan's decided enough was enough and brought up the AT.

Explosive projectiles darted for Miller's position, and before the Lieutenant knew what was what, holes appeared and limbs went flying, and bits of cardboard were embedded in his chest. The impacts generated heat and partially melted his chest, making it softer.

Great pain now tormented him.

Along with the accompanying gun car, Miller's position went up in flames.

Literally.

The box caught fire as well.

Markus watched on as he returned fire, shocked and ready to cry out in frustration.

He knew the Green's were losing but he didn't know if they could win. A miracle would have to be performed.

As worry piled withing his heart, a sudden explosion sent him flying, breaching the box and injuring many.

Dazed, Markus watched on Flynn yelled about, following this, those injured were dragged away, including himself.

Green corpse's littered the inside of the box, both old and recent.

Flynn's platoon just suffered through an exploding gun car. With it being targeted by the Tan's and being taken out soon after. It was closer to Flynn's box than Sayke's.

The explosion opened up the side and provided new angles for the Tan's to shoot into. Flynn and his platoon faced greater pressure than before and all they could do was fire back.

The battle progressed with the companies fighting capabilities diminishing. The wounded and dead started to outnumber the healthy. More and more Tan's climbed the stairs, with their machine guns tearing into the the boxes.

Eventually, Captain Bell decided to throw away the burning shoe and retreat.

He gave out the order soon after.

Ostrander and what was left of his men were the first to fall back. With Flynn, Sayke and Miller covering for them, they largely kept their present strength making their way to the back.

Bell noted eighteen lived, with half the number carrying injuries. Ostrander being one of them. His left hand now barely resembling a stump.

Miller was next, they took the long way which provided abundant cover. They avoided being shot at.

Twenty-two made their way back. Their Lieutenant held his chest in pain and could hardly speak.

Flynn was next but due to Miller's absence, they had a harder time of it.

They made their way back slowly, theirs was essentially a fighting retreat, slowly backing away as they shot at their opponents. Preventing a sudden charge from happening.

Their casualties grew, with Flynn even getting shot in the shoulder in a moment of distraction.

With the extensive aid of Sayke and his soldier's, Flynn and twenty others lived through it.

Now it was Sayke's turn to go at it.

Forgetting to breathe, Bell watched on as Sayke exited the box and withdrew.

At this point in time, the Tan's noticed their retreat and began piling the pressure, something akin to placing a foot on the Green's chest.

The amount of bullets that flew at Sayke and his men was ridiculous. They were torn to shreds and barely hung together.

That and the assault the Tan's launched made it seem like fate itself wanted the Lieutenant and his men dead.

They knew the Green's defense was at it's weakest and decided to push for the prize.

In the end, only three made it out alive, with Sayke now missing part of his leg below the knee.

With a heavy heart, Bell made his way down and fell back as well.

He hoped the fall back point was finished.

_

Connor found that carrying multiple weapons was difficult and that action movies should not be trusted.

On his back were two AT weapons along with a sniper rifle. Held within one of his arms was an ammo can and within the other was an LMG.

He likened himself to pack mule.

Getting closer to the scene of action, a bad feeling plagued his heart, leading to hastened steps.

Soon he found his first green, they were panicked and wounded.

He figured it was a bad sign.

They limped and stumbled past him, not even looking at him.

He went in the direction they came from and immediately found the others falling back as well.

Many had broken bodies, dragging their feet behind them, their arms limp and hanging, and some weren't even conscious.

This scene froze his mind, he didn't know what to think and how to perceive the situation. Fear found it's way into his mind. He had never seen anything like this before. Maybe in movies but his old world was relatively peaceful.

Lost in his worries and thoughts, Connor almost didn't notice the Lieutenant, Ostrander, being dragged past him by a soldier. This caused his eyes to widen further.

Even a Lieutenant?

Following this, he saw Flynn holding his shoulder with a grimace and walked towards him.

He wanted information.

"Sir, I was absent, what in the hell happened?"

Flynn took a look at Connor before finally recognizing him. He chuckled to himself but winced in pain soon after.

He motioned for Connor to walk with him, he didn't want to stand around as they were being chased. He recounted the event's from his perspective, even mentioning that Markus was launched from an explosion.

Hearing this, Connor was a millisecond away from asking about Markus' status when he heard a familiar voice.

"HEY *cough* CONNOR!"

He quickly turned his head towards the voice and saw a man who looked awful.

It was Markus.

Filled with relief, he went towards the injured man and nearly tackled him in a hug before he realized the condition he was in.

Before he could say anything, shouting sprung about and panic immediately permeated the air. Even Markus had fear written on his face.

Connor looked at his friend, and began thinking of the Tan's threat.

Are they that scary?

The Tan's, are they that terrifying?

Looking around him, the answer was apparently a yes.

And then he noticed the soldier's on the boxes above and around them.

Before he could react, bullets tore through the air and bodies dropped, his included. A moment later, he was on the ground.

With pain originating from his chest, Connor found that he could barely breathe. Now on his back, he attempted to get up but failed, a new weight that wasn't his pinned him. Opening his eyes, he took a peek at himself and found a body on his.

It was unmoving.

It was familiar.

It was Markus.

A new pain, originating from his heart, tore through him.