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I am writing something completely unrelated to anything else I have done in the attempt to help me get out from my writer’s block state.  There are going to be shorter posts than what I have done in a long long time in order to get me back into writing.  Just keep in mind that I am doing something simple to help me, not something super complex and long to make things worse for me. 

Sagittarius

Prologue

In the year 2072 on the planet of Karus, a unified government wrestled with the idea of a war with their neighboring planet of Karlios.  Relations had continued to grow worse due to several incidents that claimed the lives of several dozen innocent civilians, and people on both sides wanted blood.  Between the two planets was a smaller and uncolonized moon called Tregos by both.  Tregos was a planet that had a very unique landscape that had forests, jungles, deserts, ice wastelands, grasslands, and swamps across its surface.  Both sides, seeing this small world as a great stepping stone for an invasion force, gathered their forces.  Primitive starships and military drop ships rushed towards the world from both sides, hoping to gain a foothold and then setup the invasion of their enemy.

     Corporal Nicholas Bannon, age 23, sat in one of the numerous dropships that headed towards Tregos.  He was a member of the Karusian Ranger Corps, the military force that was a step up from the regular infantry.  With him were 9 other soldiers as part of his squad.  Master Sergeant Jacob Huxley was the head man in the squad, followed by Staff Sergeant Larry Column.  Then it was just a mixture of grunts that included Nicholas.  He was a rifleman, like several others in the unit, and he did his best to keep up with the squad leaders’ expectations.  Sergeant Huxley was a demanding NCO and a damned fine one at that.  Everyone in the unit pulled together to make the man proud.  Within the squad, there were six riflemen, one sniper, one engineer, one medic, and one radioman.

     “Alright Rangers, listen up.  We will be touching down in five minutes.  There is no enemy contact detected currently, but we will not be going in with that mentality.  Our forces are going to be landing in as straight of a line as our superiors could draw.  After that, we are all advancing until we make contact with the enemy.  Once contact has been made, we are to report numbers and anything else we observe and send that information back to headquarters.  After that, reinforcements have been promised to help root out any enemy forces that we make contact with.  Sadly, we have barely any information about this moon except that it is between Karus and Karlios.  Keep your eyes open and watch your back.          
We are going to be split into two teams since our vehicles can only hold about six men in each.  Sergeant Column and I will be the team leaders of course.  Good luck men, and make me proud,” said Master Sergeant Huxley as he stood at the front of the dropship.  The man was the definition of a good Ranger.  Everyone was dressed in a similar way, but it seemed so much more appropriate for Huxley.  The man wore the traditional Karusian battle fatigues that were appropriate for the woodland areas that they would be deploying in.  On his head was a brimmed hat to keep the sun and any rain out of his eyes and a cigar stuck out of his mouth like some sort of movie cliché that Bannon had seen before.
     “I guess everyone wants to be like the guys in the movies,” thought Nicholas to himself.  Still, Huxley was not just a Ranger who dressed like a movie hero.  The man worked his ass off to get the job done and to keep his men alive.  He certainly wouldn’t stop doing his best now that they were heading into a warzone. 
    
     “Thirty seconds!” said the pilot as he began slowing the forward movement of the ship.  Everyone leaned slightly in their seats as they began shifting forward due to the momentum.  Then they felt the ship descending slowly.  The almost useless windows of the dropship did reveal that they were beginning to descend beneath a high forest canopy.  There was no information about what was beneath the canopy, but they were about to find out.  The dropship continued descending through the thick forest until the Rangers felt the ship slow to a halt.  It lurched slightly and the pilot activated the hovering mode of the ship so that they could exit.
     “Good luck Rangers! I will detach your vehicles when you are ready!” shouted the pilot over the sound of the engine.
     “Thanks for the lift captain!” shouted Master Sergeant Huxley in reply.  The head NCO then kicked open the side door of the dropship with his rifle ready and hopped outside into the forest.  There was only a three foot drop, but each Ranger was carrying about 80 pounds of equipment.  They wore very little armor but they had to carry enough supplies to last being cut off from resupply for several days.  So when Nicholas hopped out of the dropship, he landed roughly on the ground and had to roll out of the way of the Ranger following him so that he was not crushed.
     “Check your footing corporal,” said Huxley to Nicholas as the Rangers secured the drop zone.  Shortly after that, the two Light All-Terrain Vehicles were dropped from the belly of the large dropship and it slowly began ascending.
     “I will see you guys again soon!” assured the pilot over the COM channel.  Soon after that, the short range radio lost reception and only their radioman would be able to get a hold of anything outside of their range.
     “Well Rangers, let’s get moving,” ordered Huxley as he walked over to the closest L-ATV and climbed into the passenger seat.  Four other Rangers piled into the vehicle with one man on a mounted turret, one man driving, and the other two in the middle seats.
     “Corporal Bannon, what are you waiting for?” asked Sergeant Column, who was in the second L-ATV with the rest of the men waiting.
     “Sorry sir, I was just observing my surroundings,” replied Nicholas.
     “Observe your surroundings from inside the vehicle or you are going to get left behind,” replied Larry Column with a chuckle.  Nicholas squeezed into a middle seat of the vehicle and closed the door next to him.
     “Alright private, follow the other vehicle and we will be on our way,” said Column.
     “Yes sir,” replied Private Christopher Frisk as he pressed on the gas pedal and seconds later, the two vehicles were heading off towards their next checkpoint. 

     The L-ATV’s were luckily built for rocky and rough ground and their suspension made the drive more comfortable than it might have been.  Nick was not complaining as the Rangers advanced deeper into unknown territory.
     “We have advanced about thirty miles.  All clear from up here.  Have you guys seen anything?” asked Huxley over the radio.
     “Negative sir, all clear back here,” replied Column as the two vehicles pushed further still. 
     “Wait, we are getting some radio chatter.  Sounds like several squads along the line have run into some resistance already,” said Huxley after he paused to listen to the COM channels.
     “Keeping our eyes peeled for anything suspicious,” replied Column.  He then turned to the men in the L-ATV with him.
     “Alright Rangers, keep your eyes peeled.  If you see anything, even if it is simply something that catches your eye, let me know! I would rather have a false alarm and it not be something important than no alarm for a real emergency!” ordered Staff Sergeant Column.  The Rangers replied with enthusiasm, eager for their first taste of combat and wanting an end to the building tension that they had been feeling.  The thickness of the forest changed every few minutes, and Nick began to get edgy.  Then suddenly, gunfire erupted from up ahead of Nick’s L-ATV.
     “Hostiles spotted! Deploy and take up positions!” roared Huxley over the radio.  Nick’s L-ATV slammed to a halt and the Rangers filed out.  Shots rang out as the men took up defensive positions near the vehicles.  Nick and Sergeant Column moved up near where Huxley and his men were, only a dozen feet away.
     “Where are they sir?” asked Column as soon as he took cover.
     “We almost ran into them.  Private Wilson unloaded on their vehicle with the mounted machine gun, and it flipped over.  There are only about two of them ahead, but we have them pinned down.  Column, I want you and two other Rangers to circle around and flank them.  There is too much open ground between our locations so we cannot advance directly.
     “Yes sir!” replied the second in command as he turned to move back towards his men.
     “Corporal Bannon, you are with me,” he said as he moved back to where the rest of his men were.
     “Private Hawkins, with me,” added Column as he picked a second man.  The three riflemen then slowly began circling around, taking cover behind the threes as they moved.  It took about five minutes and they were not shot at even once, but Nick finally got a view of their target.  A vehicle that looked similar to their L-ATV was flipped over onto its side and was so badly beat up that Nick couldn’t tell how it looked before.  Bullets were slamming into the metal body and two Karliosian soldiers were crouched behind it and firing blindly as much as they could.  Several bodies were scattered around, obviously from Private Wilson’s quick barrage as soon as they made contact.
     “Bannon, you move left.  Hawkins, you shift right.  I will hold the middle position.  Fire on my command,” said Column as he raised his carbine rifle to his eye.  Nick stepped away from where the other two Rangers were and crouched to keep his presence hidden still.  He then leaned against a large tree and aimed his rifle.  It would take a miracle for him to miss the perfect shot he had lined up and he waited for his NCO’s order.
     “Alright you guys.  Ready…aim…fire!” said Column, and the three Rangers fired several rounds into the two enemies.  Nick’s first shot struck the closest enemy at the base of the skull and he saw the man’s head snap forward and then go limp.  Hawkins struck the second enemy square in the chest and that was it for the enemies.  All of the other bullets simply mutilated the bodies a little more until they were assuredly dead.
     “Secure the area!” ordered Huxley over the COM channel.  Nick, Hawkins, and Sergeant Column slowly advanced towards the wrecked enemy vehicle and checked each body, but none were alive.  The weapons and ammunition that were found on the enemies were destroyed because the ammo was useless to the Rangers’ weapons and the weapons were not needed.  There was nothing else found of importance and it was decided that the vehicle was merely a scout.  The rest of the Rangers spread out around the area and it was announced that the area was clear.
     “Clear!” crackled the COM channel every few seconds as each Ranger reported their status.
     “All Rangers, regroup at the L-ATVs to continue on our way to Checkpoint Two,” ordered Jacob Huxley.  The Rangers were soon back in the belly of the L-ATVs and moving forward again.  They moved deeper into unknown territory and an uncertain future.

Hah, will try to write more tomorrow.  My household is rather loud and I can't hear myself think at the moment.  I can only write in silence or with at least a better atmosphere.

you used our horoscope ;( and didnt mention me

     Nick breathed heavily as he chased after Staff Sergeant Column.  Private Ray and his NCO were just ahead of him, and he gasped for air as he grew tired from running.  Nick felt his pack weighing down on him and he cursed silently because he was not in the best physical condition and that was the reason for him falling behind.
     “Hurry it up corporal or they are going to catch up!” shouted Column from just around the next corner.  The stone structure was much larger than anyone had realized.  It continued winding further and further as well as going deeper into the ground.
     “I’m trying sir, but I am winded pretty badly,” replied Nick as best as he could.  Several guns fired from nearby and hit the wall near where he was standing.  Nick spun and fired his carbine several times before racing off with energy brought on by panic.  He didn’t know if his bullets hit anything, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to let the enemy walk right up to him without a fight.  Nick turned another corner and almost fell through a gaping hole that was in the ground.  Instead, he used his momentum and threw himself as best as he could over the hole.  It was a desperate maneuver, but it had just saved his life.  He peeked down the hole for only a second, but saw that there was another level probably a dozen feet down more.  Nick then turned and ran to the end of the hallway before going prone on the ground.  He steadied his rifle and waited only a moment.  A Karliosian soldier rounded the corner and fell straight down the hole with a shriek.  The next one turned the corner more slowly and peered down the hole with concern.  Unfortunately for him, Nick fired five bullets that struck him repeatedly until he dropped to the ground as a lifeless corpse.  A grenade bounced around the corner and Nick rolled away from where it landed.  He kicked it back down the hallway and then crawled to his feet to make his getaway.  The grenade blast shook the building slightly, but not enough to knock Nick to the ground again.  He took off after the other two Rangers and found them about five minutes later.
     “What the hell were you doing corporal? I thought you were dead after the gunfire and explosions.  You need to keep closer,” said Staff Sergeant Column as he scolded Nick.
     “Sorry Sarge, I was ambushing a few of them in order to give us some more time.  Not sure if it did the trick, but I got a couple of them at least,” replied Nick.
     “Well, Private Ray is going to setup a little surprise for them.  I am glad we have the only engineer in our group to get things going for us,” said Column.  Private Ray took off his pack and removed several small objects.
     “These are sensor mines.  They explode whenever the light that they give off is broken by a solid object.  I will be placing a number of these little guys all around the place as we move through the areas.  They will slow down the enemy or at least kill off anyone who is careless enough to charge through them,” said Ray as he walked to the doorway that Nick had just passed through and attached one just above the ground at the door.  He then jogged back over to his pack and lifted it back on.
     “Alright, let’s keep moving quickly or we will be dead,” said Larry Column as he led the two other Rangers through the larger room.  There were walkways of all sorts that twisted and turned around it, but none of them seemed to lead to anywhere.  It was a maze that simply seemed made for frustrating the hell out of anyone who passed through it.  The group spent about thirty minutes hiking around the area, and the silence was only broken periodically by the mines that Private Ray left scattered behind them.

***

     Lieutenant Vincent Pallor cursed loudly, not caring who heard it.  He had lost about seven men to the traps that the Karusians had left behind them.  It seemed that no matter how much he told his men to be careful, some idiot would end up blowing two other men to smithereens.  The officer could not seem to understand the stupidity of the men assigned to him.  His headquarters had promised intelligent and strong recruits for the war effort, but all he had gotten were men handed weapons and sent into combat.  Vincent would not stay quiet about this after he finished hunting the small number of Karusians that were still ahead of him.  He would find them and kill them for this chase that made his temper burn stronger.
     “You four men will move forward and watch the ground level for any suspicious objects.  Look for beams of light if you value your lives,” he snapped at several soldiers standing next to him.  Pallor had started this hunt with about fifteen infantry soldiers and he had lost about half of them.  It was becoming embarrassing and his name would be slandered by the elders of Karlios for his supposed incompetence.  Lieutenant Pallor finally stopped thinking about the consequences of failure and began moving forward with the rest of his men.

***

     Master Sergeant Jacob Huxley rarely lost his temper, but when he did, it was a sight to behold.  Corporal Dawning was taking cover behind a tree with Huxley on the radio to headquarters “kindly” telling them that if they didn’t move their lazy asses, a company of Karliosian soldiers and armored vehicles would be breaking through their lines.
     “I told you seven goddamn times that if I don’t get some air and ground support, we are all dead! Tell your superiors that unless they want to live in a prison camp for the rest of their lives, they will back me up here!” screamed Huxley into the radio.  The man on the other end was probably terrified that Huxley would come after him and kill him in his sleep.  When Huxley finally got a positive reply, he hung up the radio just in time to be knocked clear off of his feet by an explosion.
     “Son of a bitch!” grunted Huxley as he pulled himself to his feet.  He had lost his L-ATVs and Private Anthony Wilson to a barrage of firepower that was hidden beyond the sight of any support he had.  Specialist Dawes had disappeared and they could not establish radio contact with him.  Private Grimm was wounded badly and was being treated by Private Frisk to the best of the medic’s abilities.  All in all, things were not looking good.  He only had about two other men who could help fight, and at the rate things were going, they would be captured or killed.
     “Alright, we have to pull back! The Karliosians are advancing with little chance of us stopping them!” ordered Huxley to the men that were around him and fighting with all that they had.
     “But Sarge, I don’t think we can move Grimm with his injuries! It may kill him!” replied Private Frisk.
     “We have no choice right now.  The Karliosians may kill us rather than captures us,” replied Huxley.  As Frisk was about to argue some more, a large roar suddenly filled the air and five Karusian fighters swooped overhead and dropped off a large payload of bombs.  A dropship also hovered over the large clearing next to the stone structure and began firing its turrets at any targets that were within sight.
     “This is Major Charles Bingham of the 3^rd Karusian Assault Infantry Company.  Support is on the way, just hold tight Rangers,” said a voice over the radio.  Then Huxley breathed a sigh of relief.

Except when Septim criticizes you about them not using smart strategies that would make it dull in my opinion.  This isn't going to be a book, so I am really not caring.  If anyone thinks I should just stop, by all means, tell me and I won't argue.