Marko was looking at a sentimental object of his, his fathers old dog-tags, he usually had them wrapped around his kevlar/industrial titanium gauntlet, he flipped them and read the name “John Moroz.” Marko smiled and wrapped it around his hand again, but deep down he knew his father woudn't agree with this universal military goal that the Coalition had them doing, but his contract with the faction wouldn’t end for another month.

“Hah, Marko, you looking forward to sign out?” One soldier said, his nametag on the orange coloured armor said he was called “Duke.”
“Hell yes I am, ready to hit the bed and sleep for a fucking week after this, then try and enjoy life, y'know?” Marko replied.
“Heh, they'll have to track me down after I leave.” Another soldier said whose own name was Joseph.

The marines laughed until a large hologram appeared infront of them, light green in colour and a feminine voice announcing that they had been locked onto to. “Oh shi-” Target is three seconds from contact.

One of the pilots screamed, then Joseph was consumed by fire, falling out of the double bladed helicopter, Duke went for the handlebar and Marko went for his rifle, the weapon humming to life, pitch in unison with the pilots screaming.

Then an explosion, blood, metal and dust splattered across his green visor, Duke was yelling out and he saw the flaming figure of Joseph falling though the air.

Marko swore he'd kill whoever was responsible for that, the kid had been a couple of days from escape from Coalition Service. Marko remembered a line from one his songs. “You wired me awake and hit me with a hand of broken nails.” He didn't know why, but it stuck with him as his armour and body vibrate with the explosion, rifle hurtling out of the troop transport.

The helicopter collided with a long derelict church, religion had been outlawed by the Coalition due to 'anti-coalition efforts, when it reality, they valued a belief more than military rule, never-mind the fact that most of them weren’t hostile.

“I'm gonna' break my rusty cage.” The next line played though his head. But someones voice penetrated it. “I don't like the way you're looking at me. Fuck YOU! The thing is, you're here because you signed up! So stop looking like a fucking idiot and get to drilling!” That voice belonged to the Coalition Drill Sergeant, they had hands everywhere in the Military. Marko hated them, they were too tough on rookies and too lenient to their own.

Why the fuck was he remembering this in a crashing helicopter, the tail end had been blown clean off, the church drew near, Duke was firing a 45. Calibre pistol into what appeared to be a building with a smoke trail coming from it, evidently from a missile. One of the pilots was screaming into his headset about being taking down, rebels and something that was cut off by the loud beeping of ground imminent.

Marko blacked out, his last thought was “One bullet can change the world, or in this case, a missile.”

Marko's head never hurt so much. As the beams of light slowly invaded his eyes, the shadows fading, a deep rumble penetrated the deafening silence, Marko realised it was coming from his voice- God damn, it hurt too much for him. Laying flat out on his back, Marko's eyes finally adjust to the horror of his surroundings.

The church is caved in and crumpled, a fallen cross had landed on the cockpit as if Jesus was bowing before the destructive power of a crashed helicopter, Duke had a giant hole smashed though his helmet, exposing his young face, a blonde goatee and a bloody grimace.

There was a piece of shrapnel though his chest, Duke slowly turned his head to Duke and coughed up blood. “Se- Seeyo' on the... Oth- Side, bro.” Duke slumped, his hand clutching his pistol, the slide protruding, showing that he had spent the last of his rounds on the building to no avial, his rifle was still strapped to his front, it read “Remington 2024.” The barrel had odd circles around it and had a green energy wrapping though it, the end had been torn in half by the crash, zapping the helicopter with light amounts of static, the air even smelled of static discharge.

“Fuck it was a nasty smell, like Ozone but worse.” Marko thought, his helmet was intact from light blood splatter and dirt smudges, someone could mistake him for dead as his left fingers were mangled, probably need a new hand, one of those augmentations sounded nice.

The haze was lifting slowly.

“Who am I?” Marko thought, he did way too much thinking for a soldier.

You are Marko Moroz, a 23 year old American-Dutch man from California, who worked as an intern before joining up at the military for a 3 year contract at 20. He had long brown hair, scruffy and blasted back by wind usually, a rough beard, small circular earrings and blue eyes. He had three brothers, all dead, his parents were alive and senile and the most memorable thing he could remember right now was crashing his skateboard into a girl, who two weeks later became his first girlfriend.

But now? She was married to a black dude, Marko still felt jealous, but not by much, he'd gotten into a fight with said dude with Duke one time at a bar, they'd had the shit beaten out of them while they laughed as they were too drunk to feel a god damn thing.

From the ruined and busted walls, voices invades the silence of the utterly fucked church.

Marko pretended to be still, hand slowly reaching for his holster of his own energy pistol, hoping it wasn't broken. Good old Russian hardware didn't break right? His other hand ripped a green flare from his vest pocket, ditching it into the air with all his strength before playing dead again.

Helmets were always good, unless the enemy knew how to open them or detect when the HUD was still on.

The canisters had flown from their plastic crates, industrial steel containing a viscous black liquid with a biological hazard marking on the gray canisters, there were ten of them sprawled across the church's ruined floor, one had snapped open and was dripping all over the altar.

What were the rebels after?

(Collab.)

The clink of dogtags suddenly rattled, the orange and black gauntlet whipping for Taylor's neck, the other gauntlet was going for the gun hidden beneath him in the debris, he could hear other voices and his HUD(Head's up display.) Marko was off the ground, there was a slight limp but his armor compensated well, only being slightly pained. Taylor was taken completely by surprise as he moved and went for her neck. She took a moment to realize that he wasn't unconscious and was in fact very well alert. "T?" She heard Davis call.

"He's not unconscious." She called out.

"What?"

"He's coming at me!"

She knew that he was injured. She could see from his posture. She wasn't afraid. But she knew that she had a few tricks up her sleeve. She knew that people didn't think she was capable because she was female. But she'd show them. She was just as good as the guys. The pistol made a loud whine and was put to the side of Taylor's head, his arm tightened around her neck, he used his knee in an attempt to give her a shove in the back. "Get moving, you're going to help me escape." The helmet had a filter, it made his voice sound ominous, standard kit too.

Markos fingers were shaking, shell shock was setting in, but he knew he needed to escape, he'd been told by other military survivors of rebel attacks that they were not as nice as they were too the general public.

In a few seconds she had a gun to her neck and was been shoved in the direction to get out of there. "I'm not helping you do a damn thing." She growled.

"T?"

"I'm fine." She called back to Davis.

She looked like she was complying, but in a slightly wreckless moment when she realized she had open opportunity, she twisted, bringing her foot around the back of his in an attempt to knock his
balance as her hand moved for the gun. She was pretty quick, for a girl. Hopefully quicker than an injured marine.

The marine felt the move, he was downed by the first move taught in fucking CQC training, god damn, that sucked, but then again he was the victim of a sudden and brutal attack on his transport.

Marko hit the rubble again, pushing himself up and bolting forwards, not for Taylor but for one of the the holes in the fucked church, he'd left the gun behind, he grasped an exposed rebar pipe and flung himself out of the church, there was a loud yell and screaming of the gathering crowd as he tried to make his escape. Every step hurt.

Davis was the first to Taylor, checking every inch of her out to make sure she was unhurt as she picked up his abandoned weapon. "I'm fine, D!" She told him, trying to go after him.

"No you don't. He's military. He'll kill you. You are not going after him."
"I survived just. This is my guy." With that, Taylor took off full speed after him, leaving the other rebels to pick up the canisters and Davis chasing her.

(Collab.)

The clink of dogtags suddenly rattled, the orange and black gauntlet whipping for Taylor's neck, the other gauntlet was going for the gun hidden beneath him in the debris, he could hear other voices and his HUD(Head's up display.) Marko was off the ground, there was a slight limp but his armor compensated well, only being slightly pained. Taylor was taken completely by surprise as he moved and went for her neck. She took a moment to realize that he wasn't unconscious and was in fact very well alert. "T?" She heard Davis call.

"He's not unconscious." She called out.

"What?"

"He's coming at me!"

She knew that he was injured. She could see from his posture. She wasn't afraid. But she knew that she had a few tricks up her sleeve. She knew that people didn't think she was capable because she was female. But she'd show them. She was just as good as the guys. The pistol made a loud whine and was put to the side of Taylor's head, his arm tightened around her neck, he used his knee in an attempt to give her a shove in the back. "Get moving, you're going to help me escape." The helmet had a filter, it made his voice sound ominous, standard kit too.

Markos fingers were shaking, shell shock was setting in, but he knew he needed to escape, he'd been told by other military survivors of rebel attacks that they were not as nice as they were too the general public.

In a few seconds she had a gun to her neck and was been shoved in the direction to get out of there. "I'm not helping you do a damn thing." She growled.

"T?"

"I'm fine." She called back to Davis.

She looked like she was complying, but in a slightly wreckless moment when she realized she had open opportunity, she twisted, bringing her foot around the back of his in an attempt to knock his
balance as her hand moved for the gun. She was pretty quick, for a girl. Hopefully quicker than an injured marine.

The marine felt the move, he was downed by the first move taught in fucking CQC training, god damn, that sucked, but then again he was the victim of a sudden and brutal attack on his transport.

Marko hit the rubble again, pushing himself up and bolting forwards, not for Taylor but for one of the the holes in the fucked church, he'd left the gun behind, he grasped an exposed rebar pipe and flung himself out of the church, there was a loud yell and screaming of the gathering crowd as he tried to make his escape. Every step hurt.

Davis was the first to Taylor, checking every inch of her out to make sure she was unhurt as she picked up his abandoned weapon. "I'm fine, D!" She told him, trying to go after him.

"No you don't. He's military. He'll kill you. You are not going after him."
"I survived just. This is my guy." With that, Taylor took off full speed after him, leaving the other rebels to pick up the canisters and Davis chasing her.

The HUD was bobbing up and down, no wait, that was Marko's helmet shaking as the interlocking mechanism between the chest piece and helmet had been shaken loose by the crash, he had no weapons but his - no wait. Marko stopped behind a car, a nice blue one that had been parked by a member of the fleeing crowd, feeling his boot up and down and then pulling out a combat knife, throwing it between both hands to make sure he had a good grip before getting up and going for a limping run, stumbling over car-hoods, looking behind to him to see Taylor running after him.

That's when the car decided to hit him, there was a loud screech and the soldier was blown back, the helmet's left visor was smashed revealing the blue eye behind it, there was a green glass fragment imbedded in his right cheek, clearly visisble and the holograms danced inside, the eye was rolling around in it's socket, the car that he'd bent down behind was now the bed for Marko, his armor had crushed the hood, top of the engine and it was bellowing loudly with it's burglar siren.

Marko knew this battle was over, he could feel his spine crying in rejection, the line had been crossed, he felt like losing it but his body objected, he slumped into the smashed hood. He was soldier, and he'd been beaten by a bunch of civvies with guns.

Marko passed out.

(Another fantastic Collab Post!)

Marko awoke with a lurch, hands outstretched to stop a phantom car, his heart thumping in his stomach as he collapsed into the bed again, his body was dreading the impact but it never happened. Everything came flooding back, Duke, Joseph and the missile that took down the Swallow Dropship without much hassle, Marko tried to move his hands, and felt them over his chest, he withheld a deep breath and leaned upwards, sliding his legs off the bed.

At least he was still wearing the standard issue white singlet with Coalition symbol on the right breast and gray cargo trousers, the belt was missing though, they'd searched him pretty well for a bunch of rebels responsible for the death of Duke and Joseph, yes, he still held that against them, they were the closest he had to friends in the Coalitions Slave Brigades, at least that was the nickname in the Military.

Marko got to his feet, let out a small "Aahh." of pain as he found without his armor that leg injury was worse than he thought, he limped over to the cells doors and started to rattle them. "C'mere." The marine said aloud, his eyes full of anger.

Taylor had up and left the marine for a while, but heard him shouting just as she was on her way back. "I'm here." She held up a cup of water and some food. "If you move away from the door, I can give these to you once I'm inside." She told him, grinning like a fool despite the situation.

Davis had told her specifically not to enter his cell without another rebel present, but she couldn't see anyone, not that she cared. They were used to her disobeying rules all the time. And the food was supposed to be her's, but the marine would have to eat at some point.

"So, are you interested in the food? Because like I said, you'll have to move away from the door if you are."

The marine backed off, hands still trying to free themselves from the plastic zipcuffs, you coudn't win everything, espically with the rebellious soul that was Marko. The marine continued backing up till he leaned against a wall, letting out a small "Ah" again when he took the weight off his injured right leg.

"I'm hungry and I don't like being in a cell for no reason if that's what you mean, didn't you see the broadcasts, you fucking rebels haven't had a problem with us again for weeks, you guys get mad all of a sudden again?" The trash-talking marine replied, his voice full of venom.

He was baiting her.

"You are in here for a reason, Marine." Taylor glared as she opened the door, then closed it quickly behind her with her foot. "We found the evidence we wanted in your chopper and thankfully one of you were left alive so we can question you about the contents." She told him, moving to set the food on the wooden box in the room with a plastic cup of water.

"So, eat up, then we'll talk." She told the marine coldly, her tone of voice saying it wasn't a choice, it was an order.

Marko eyed her, making a walk to the wooden box, using a fake heavier limp to try and distract her eyes, then making a sudden and verticle dive for her throat with his the plastic line between his zipcuffs, Marko cried out in pain, but was hoping he'd catch her and use her weight to keep himself upright.

Prisoner escape, it was just better when one didn't have an injured leg, he wasn't sure what was wrong with it but it was disrupting everything he did.
Taylor noticed the limp immediately. It looked like it was getting worse. "A medic w--" She cried out when suddenly the marine's zipcuffed hands were around her neck. She growled. "Let me go. You're going to pay for this, I promise you that if you don't let me go immediately."

The man didn't stop, stepping back and pulling upwards to make sure that the zipcuffs plastic line would stay where he wanted to be, hoping that was expereinced with a position like this. "It's only me here, and I'm all out of cash, I can reign down fire with an order, you use a gun to command other people, we use respect, what makes you think that I'll pay?" Marko growled.

"Give me the key or your face is going to meet the food."

She laughed. "When I say pay, I don't mean in cash." She smirked. "If you'd have told me you wanted me this close to you, then I wouldn't have objected. In fact, I would have gotten here a lot sooner."

Taylor let out a girlish giggle, trying her best to play the part. Her fingers toyed with his trousers where the belt should have been, threatening to go into them and touch him further. The zipcuffs plastic was digging into her neck, making her wince, but she was determined not to show it, and definitely not to give him the key to the door.

Was she? God damn it, Marko thought he knew what she was going to do and she went the opposate way, he didn't want to injure her but she was suddenly asking for it, but instead his instinct told him to back off, loosening the plastic around her throat just slightly but probably still giving her the chance to fight back. This is why Marko hated being captive to women, he was just glad it wasn't caught on tape, his XO would personally kick his ass for not knocking her out straight out.

When Marko loosened the zipcuffs around her neck, she grinned. "That's more like it." Her fingers still toyed with his trousers, waiting for him to be completely off guard before quickly manipulating the situation so that she'd taken out her hidden knife and quickly snapped the tie so she could move away. And she did, before pocketing her knife. "Try that again and I'll kill you. Now, let's just get straight to business. That crate you had on the chopper. What is it?" She was pissed, and her tone had quickly gone from playful to serious.

"Woudn't you like to know, it's funny how you caught a grunt expecting me to be CO of the fucking Coalition, you really are as dumb as the media portrays you to be if you think that I know what they are, I know they're a substance and it takes twenty years of collection to gain that amount, Duke or Joseph might have known but you killed em'." Marko replied, sliding onto the floor and leaning on the wooden crate, he woudn't get the upperhand with that knife and his leg.

He would play her game for now. "That's right, you kiled two men with that missile of yours, wait, make that four, I'm the only survivor aren't I? Where are their god damn dog-tags? I'll tell you what I know if I get them and you let me out of here." Dog-tags and freedom for information, it was a deal he was willing to offer.

"All I know is that we were going to dump it in the water and it isn't as lethal as the canisters say it is, safe to touch, not to swallow said XO. Oh fuck you, I'm not telling you shit till you give the deal a think though." Marko stopped himself before he divulged anymore information.

"Their dog-tags? You think we have their tags? We left them on their bodies. We don't even have them. I guess I could go and get them for you though, if the bodies are still there. Don't know why I should bother though, you've given us more information than we knew before. Plenty in fact. Anyway, I'll go look for these tags. We need all the information about this stuff we can get. You guys are up to something. Something big, and something bad."

Taylor moved to the door. "And just for your information. We're not as bad as everyone makes us out to be. We're just desperate. The coalition is up to something and we're doing everything in our power to protect ourselves. No crime in that."

Marko appreciated the offer to grab the tags, it was something symbolic, something to give to their families and he hoped she knew that was his goal, not like some of the sick members of the Coalition who used their own allies dogtags as trophies and the XO's allowed that.

"Your enemies are just the same as mine, we're just contracted, maybe we're not so different." Marko shouted after her, looking at the food on the wooden crate and wondering why the mashed potato resembled gray mush, making them think of exposed cranium.

He wasn't so hungry anymore, that and being groped like that had turned him off from eating, that was sneaky, too sneaky. "Don't kill anymore marines." Marko muttered to himself, wishing that he could stay in the cell, there was something calming about being there, no worries, except if the rebels tried to torture him.

Taylor watched him for a moment at the door. He looked kinda like he was ready to give up. If it made things easier for them, then good. But she kind of felt sorry for him. It was something she shouldn't feel and she quickly shook it away. "I'll see you later." She told him.

"With the dogtags." She added, hoping it gave him some form of comfort.

If Davis saw her just then she'd recieve a massive pounding thinking that she was growing soft. It was why she chose not to tell him about going to get the dogtags and instead quietly snuck out the warehouse to go back to where the chopper had gone down.

A very big Collab.

Marko picked up his tray, limped over to the jail cell, rattling it across the bars and calling out for the rebels. "Hey! Fuckers! I'm still in here, you gonna interrogate me or what? I'm waiting, this isn't much of a second date!" The marine stopped dragging it along the bars and hit one of the poles and then threw the tray though the crack with his zipcuffed hands.

Marko was getting impatient, he doubled over and collapsed on the bed, looking up on the roof. "Put on some music at least, Jesus! I get more entertainment at a poorhouse." The marine closed his eyes as the roof wasn't exactly interesting, but it made him reflect on the status of where he was, if he had a gun he could probably escape and at the same time he didn't feel like escaping, it was a break from shooting and working everyday, those canisters though, it cost his squad's life.

Vengeance was still on his mind when Davis rounded the corner. "What's with the noise, punk?" Davis questioned "Fuck you, it's better than the silence." replied Marko, they were staring daggers at each-other, the tension in the room was unbearable before Davis left. "Oh yeah? I'll be right back."

"Yeah, you better run, you fucking coward." Marko shouted after him, getting up from the bed and waiting for him to return, but he rounded the corner with a silver collar made out of steel, explosive it seemed to be. "Oh don't you fucking dare, that's illegal by all counts, I could have your ass killed in court and in life." Marko stepped back. "I don't see any cops or marines." Davis replied.

As soon as the door opened they charged at eachother, fists being flung and Marko's injured leg let him down, falling on the ground and he heard the high-pitched whine and clink of the collar shutting around his neck, Davis pulled him up by it. "You'll fight for us now." he spat, Marko tried to punch him in the knee but David stepped back and shook his head.

"Nuh-uh, let me let you think about it." Davis yelled as he shut the cell door, disappearing from sight again.

"Fuck." Marko muttered, still lying on the floor.

Marko  was lying on the bed, staring up at the roof when he heard Taylor  talking to him. "Good then, you nearly made the mistake of letting them  guess which one survived, unwittingly I helped you and now I've got a  rhetorical choice of helping you or having my head blown sky-high."  Marko sat up, holding out a hand for the dog-tags.

"Didn't tell him, no, don't see why I should, I'd probably suffer more than a collar, for shits sake." Marko grumbled in reply.

Taylor  stood there quietly for a moment watching Marko for a moment. She  wanted to help. Again, just as silent, she took the tags from her pocket  and handed them over to Marko. "It's not like we want to do this..."  She told him. "We're forced into this position because of the coalition.  If there was another way, we'd go that way, instead." She told him.


"You can't just blame us for this mess. We're desperate." 


The  tags jingled in his hands, some of the charred flesh that stuck to  Joseph's tag was taken off with his fingers, he wasn't afraid of  touching it, he almost showed no emotion, all he cared was that these  tags were the only things that linked him to his old group and he still  cared for them, even in death.


He  tied the tags around the chain of his own and intertwined the tags till  they became a bundle. "There is always another way, this isn't the best  one, you just have to find the right path, it sounds like a ploy, but  it isn't, I've got no paths, you do, you are already intwined with my  destiny because of this." Marko pointed to the silver collar with the  beeping green lights.


"You can tell your friends that I'll fight for them, but if they ever lower the threshold on this collar, I WILL shoot them." 


Taylor  stared coldly at Marko. "You say there is always another path, but  where was this other path when your men murdered my parents in front of  me. Where was this other path that should have saved them!" She shouted  angrily at them, at him.


"You  talk about other paths, but your men didn't take other paths. They just  killed my parents while I watched. That is why we're desperate. You  don't see the other paths so we're forced not to either."


"I'll  try to see if I can get them to remove the collar. Keep you in here or  something. If they give you a gun because you say you'll fight for us,  then they're stupid. You could shoot them before they have a chance to  blow your head off. This is you taking a different path, a different  tactic so you can get back to your men and tell them exactly where we  are so they can come in adn shoot the rest of us." Taylor stared at him  darkly, the hatred rolling off her in waves currently. She blamed him,  them for how the rebels turned out to be in all of this.


"So  you're saying you hate my kind, you hate our tenacity." Marko stood up,  moving closer and closer, dogtags jingling with every limp, there was  no pointing and no hateful gaze from Marko. "Our refusal to surrender,  you hate me, you hate the things the Military stands for, but you don't  know that we don't stand for anything anymore, because in the end of  each path it does not matter." Marko held up the dogtags.


"We're  toy soldiers, I've fought wars and won them all, bit by bit I was torn  apart, I'm a marine and we military are never surpossed to show it our  ties with the Coalition, I've gone toe-to-toe with the Coalition, we  were annexed not willingly joined, theres a certain line and you have  crossed it, I never ordered the attack on the rebels families, I didn't  cause it, I wasn't even involved, why would the Military want to help  destroy what they helped build?" Marko tried to remain calm and gritted  his teeth, this was him releasing the pent up anger from the start of  the Coalitions takeover.


"This collar can pop off at any minute, and my men?"


Marko held up the dogtags again. "They're right here."


"An  eye for an eye." Taylor said quietly, with an anger filled tone. His  men for her parents. She was a bitter girl at 19. Very bitter. Taylor  didn't mean it, but right now she was just so angry. 


She  knew her words could provoke him, but again, she didn't care. "You're  men for my parents, seems fair right? My parents were helpless. So were  your men." Taylor felt the tears coming and quickly wiped her eyes. She  wasn't going to cry in front of him.


"This  is your own fault. You might not have been there, but you still fight  for them. If the military stood up to the coalition, you could destroy  them. But you choose to fight for them, with them." 


Marko  let go the of the dog-tags. "I know it isn't fair, life isn't fair, I  admire what you rebels are doing, the end-goal, but not how you want to  go there." The marine said, feeling like a tie-breaker between the rival  forces.


"I  had a contract, I used to value what the factions could afford, not  their goal, god only knows that I imagined this as my destiny, so forget  it, I'll fight for you, I've got nothing left according to your logic  anyway." Marko replied, resisting the urge to push her out of his way,  making his way to the door.


"I need my armor first."


"You'll  be having our armor. Not that suit you had at the beginning. And I'll  have to get a medic to see that leg of yours. If your damaged, then you  won't be any good to us fighting." She told him. 


"So  if you follow me, we'll stop at a medic first and then get you kitted  out." She added, Davis was going to kill her when he heard this.


With that she opened the door and left, leaving the door open so he could follow. 


"Well  I need to salvage the parts then, I'm used to supporting armor, and I  don- Fine." Marko replied, following after her and was glad he could get  out of the cell, it might have been a good break but he was sick of it  by now.


"It's  just a sprain, probably a snapped tendon, all I need is the leg armor  from my suit and it'll support it till it heals, and with the armor you  rebels were wearing it dosen't look like much, then again, what do I  expect..." Marko added, limping behind her.


"And it's just got a cracked visor, right?"


"You  can't have the suit." Taylor simply told him. She didn't want to let  him know that they were salvaging the parts to use for something as well  as looking into the technology behind it in hopes of using ot adapting  their own armor. 


"We're  still getting it looked at. Our medic's are just as good as yours. You  have nothing to worry about there. I've broken numerous bones over the  years and every time the medics have sorted me out. 


"The  cracked visor is getting fixed..." Taylor added, hoping it would stop  his questions. "You can use our armor." She continued to walk down the  corridor. People glanced her way, looking from her and then to Marko in  shock before getting back to their business. They'd probably run and  tell Davis all about this. 


She was going to be in so much trouble. 


"Well  you won't get much out of it, all the valuable data is encrypted in  several ways to stop you guys from scavanging dead troopers, that's  probably why it's taken a day and a half to fix it, which I suppose is  how long I was out and then awake in my cell?" Marko replied, looking at  the other rebels, he woudn't attempt a smile, he knew what they might  be thinking about him.


"Might just be as good as ours, but are they willing to help?"


"They'll  help. If they don't I'll get them to tell me what to do and I'll do it  myself. Worst comes to worst I'll just recollect what was done for me,  and do it to you." 


Taylor  turned to the right, a door with a medic's red cross came into view and  Taylor knocked on it. An old woman opened the door, looked at Taylor  and then to the male behind. 


"Oh no..." She started, shaking her head.


"Please, Jane. For me." 


"Davis came here. He's looking for you. He's not happy at all." 


"Screw Davis. Just help him. He's helping us now, but to help us his leg has to be looked at." Taylor sighed.


Jane glanced at the male. "Any weapons?" 


"No, we searched him good." Taylor told her.


"Okay, bring him in. Ten minutes, that's all I've got."


"Sure. We'll be gone in ten." 


With  that they walked inside and Jane led him to a bed. "Sit. Roll up your  trouser leg and I'll have a look." She ordered, not too kindly.


"You owe me for this Taylor. Any of the others wouldn't do this, even for you. You remember what his kind did, right?" 


"I remember. And he knows about it to. Just help him." 


She nodded and got to work looking at his leg.


The  marine rolled up his right trouser leg and revealed the injury, it was a  snapped tendon alright and some degree of internal bleeding, there was  also a tattoo a little below the knee that depicted an arrow pointing  down to the foot with "Your ass here." above it. Typical marine humor  etched into his skin.


Marko  tried not to smile. "You could identify me as an individual and not a  collective hivemind, as I'm sure that I'll be dragging the both of you  out of here if you're ever found, alive or not." Marko said, looking  around the room, lots of medical instruments, interesting, where did  they get them all?


Marko also extended his handcuffs. "Do me a favor?"


Jane  looked at Marko. "That's it. I'm not helping him. He's sitting there  threatening us. I'm playing no part in this. Davis was stupid to bring  him back alive and you are stupid Taylor for believing that he'll fight  for us."


"Jane!  Tell me what to do and I'll fix him up. This can all be on my head  then. I don't care. Maybe we'll have a chance of living more with him.  If we killed him like the others, or just left him there, we'd be as  good as dead anyway. We need to find out what those containers hold."


Jane  frowned. "I'm not helping him and I'm not letting you help him either,  Taylor. Have you forgotten what they did to your parents?"


"Let  me interject here, Jane, I'm all for 'Fuck the system' as much as you  are, it wasn't a threat and I apologise if you saw it that way, it was a  statement, I'm just a man in an explosive collar, no threat to you as  much as the Coaliation, you are not a living bomb, I am, all help would  be appreciated, and if you are going to accuse me of having a hand in  killing peoples parents say it to my face." Marko said, moving to push  his trouser-leg back down, thinking they woudn't help him anyway.


"No!  I haven't forgotten. But this man could be our only hope in helping us  against them." Taylor said quietly after Marko had interrupted them.


Jane  glared at them both. "I hope you know what you're doing, Taylor. I  really do hope so, because if he gets free. His men will come here and  kill us all. Those they don't kill will be prisoners. I'll fix up his  leg but not because of you, or him. Because either way, when he get's  out. We'll be screwed. And you Taylor, will be the traitor." She told  the girl.


With  that, she walked away grabbing some things off the counters before  coming back to Marko. "Trouser leg up again before I change my mind. And  you're not getting those cuffs off. Not while I'm treating you." She  told him coldly.


"I've  got my men right here, doctor." Marko pointed upwards with his  handcuffed hands to the bundle of dogtags around his neck before pulling  his trouserleg up again, revealing the marine humor joke again.


"You could have some confidence that if I do betray you, I'll be dead three times over." 


"Three  times over? If you betray us, all the men, women and children trapped  here fighting for freedom will die. When you get that collar off you,  you'll be straight back to the coalition telling them our coordinates  and who's head you want on a plate in front of you. And it'll be  starting with Taylor's. That's what I have confidence in. Now, shut up.  While you're here and I'm looking at your leg, I get to decide on your  pain levels." She told him. 


"Torturing  me without reason, and you said your doctors were as good as ours."  Marko muttered, bracing himself for pain, internal bleeding on his side  and this lady were probably not a good combination, he could already  picture her with a bonecutting saw and his leg ready for amputation.


He frowned inside.


"We  have good reason too." Jane told him darkly. "Fortunately, for you, I'm  not like your men. Like the coalition." She added on before moving to  take a needle and a clear liquid. "This'll only sting for a minute."


With that, she stuck the needle into his leg above the area of injury and injected whatever it was inside.


"And just so you know, it's to numb the area before I do anything. To stop any pain." She added. 


Taylor just stood back, arms folded across her chest, waiting for everything to be finished so they could move on.


Marko  bit his lip, he hated needles, he'd seen the type of things they could  do when a medic messed up on the front lines. "Is that it? Oh I  figured." Marko said, leaning back on the wall, grabbing himself a chair  and sitting down.


"What exactly are you going to do?"


"We  don't have scanners or anything here, but it's obvious that something  is bleeding inside. I'm going to make a small incision, and just make  sure it isn't serious, and try to patch up whatever is causing the  bleeding. Then I'll fix you staight back up. You won't feel a thing  because I've numbed the area." She touched a few places on his leg. "Can  you feel any of that?" She asked.


"Nope." Marko simply replied, shifting to take a look at his leg and mumbling about something or rather. 


Jane  grabbed a scapel and before anything was mentioned, she cut a long deep  gash into his leg. She grabbed a few things and checked the wound out,  before thirty minutes later stitching it back up and wrapping a bandage  around the wound. 


"All done." She told him finally. 


"He's fixed?" Taylor asked. 


"Sure.  It'll be delicate for a week or so, but it was nothing worse than a  broken tendon and some bleeding. All sorted, unfortunately." She added,  glacing to the marine. Nothing had changed. She still hated him.


Marko  got up, it was more than a little delicate, she'd been quite the  vicious animal with his injury, not something he wanted to do again, but  he was feeling a little confrontational, as he started for the door  with less of a limp he resisted the urge to raise his hand and mimic  dick sucking gestures, more marine related humor.


Marko  didn't hate her though, he understood where she came from, but didn't  like the way she expressed the hostility, he'd agreed to helping them,  it wasn't common sense to be an ass to said sudden ally.


"Can we go now?"


"Sure."  Taylor said quietly, before mouthing a thank-you to Jane. She didn't  know how much Taylor appreciated. "Now to get you kitted out." She told  him, moving to the door and walking out - straight into Davis. 


"Taylor,  what the fuck do you think you're playing at." He yelled. "I've been  looking everywhere for you then people come telling me your gallivanting  around with the enemy." 


"D,  I know what I'm doing. I'm getting him fixed and kitted out so he can  fight with us. That's why you put the collar on him, right."


"Yes,  but that doesn't mean he's safe. You are not to go off, letting him  out, and just wander off. I want him in that cell for observation before  we even think about letting him out. What if -" He cut off. "You're a  stupid girl. Do you know that?!"


"I'm  not ten years old, D. I can look after myself." Taylor growled,  grinding her teeth as she tried to keep her temper in check.


"If  I might interject, Sir." Marko grinned and opened his mouth, moving his  cuffed hands up and moving his cheeks and hands in perfect momentum to  simulate the sucking of a philiac object, he did this for a few seconds  with that huge, shit eating grin.


"With all respect."


Davis  was about to speak when Marko interrupted and was completely out of  line. "You fucking bastard." He growled. He grabbed Taylor's arm,  pulling her out of touching distance of Marko. "You want to end up like  your parents? Continue down the path your going. This marine will kill  you given the chance. I'd buck up your ideas." He turned to two other  rebels. "Take Taylor to her room. Make sure she stays there for the rest  of the day."


"Davis  you can't do that. I'm not a fucking child." Taylor raged. It didn't  matter. She was still pulled away by the other rebels, like a child.


Davis turned his attention to the marine. "Come on, back to your cell. Now." 


"Make  me, cocksucker." Davis was trying to bait him to do something, people  might wonder what, maybe he was spoiling for a fight, he was probably  too valuable to kill with the collar, that was a threat they would use  if he tried to escape, but he wasn't trying to escape was he? The  soldier raised his hand to twitch his finger in the "Come on then, if  you think you're hard enough gesture."


Marko  was standing his ground, waiting for Davis to come running. "She's not a  child, Sir, you go around treating all the girls like that? No matter  my gaydar is pinging off the charts." Davis added, lowering his cuffed  hands and poking out his tongue.


"I  thought the rebels were like a family? I thought you all had equal say,  so why are you sending off Taylor and sending me back to my cell,  information and my agreement to fight for you not enough? Do I have to  drag you out of a firefight or some shit." 


"I'm  not having her near you. You're a crude Marine. She's just a girl who's  stupid and stubborn enough to foolishly believe in things that won't  come true. Her parents were killed. Killed in front of her. And she  still believes that she'll get the people responsible and then the world  will be a happier place. It doesn't work like that. And I know, that if  you manage to escape, you'll have her head first." He snapped. 


"I've  looked out for her since your people killed her parents. I intend to  continue looking out for her. She is not going to be seen in your  company again, just to be fucked over, tortured and eventually killed if  your men ever find you and us here." 


"And for your information, agreement or no agreement, doesn't mean that you have our trust."


"She  got me my brothers, she helped you get a little more time before the  tracking squads come for you, and you haven't lost a thing, I have  however, you know that Joseph died in the air, burning from the blast of  the missile, it takes approx' sixty seconds for one to die of burning,  the flames started at his chest so by the time it reached his neck on  the ground he wasn't dead, as the distance was too small for him to die  on impact, so he burned to death, Duke died of blood loss from the  crash, you know it takes longer? But no, the impact decreased bleed out  time by five hours, they are on your name, cocksucker." Marko held up  the tags.


"You're  like kids with guns, and I'm not that crude, only to you, you deserve  it. You shoudn't be in command, you're a beta, if anything, Taylor  should be boss if you act like this all the time, she's more of an  alphamale than you're acting right now." Marko added, stepping closer  with every word.


"I  didn't order the death, a lot of your men seem to think I did, I'm not  even past masterclass sergeant and you guys think I'm responsible, you  don't know shit, yet you bitches pose a good threat, we're just  pacifiers, oh the irony." Marko decided he'd add a little bit.


"Bet you didn't know that Duke had a daughter and was  a loving father, heck, pretty sure Joseph wasn't out of his 17's, he  lied to get into the military from what I know." Marko took another few  steps, moving his handcuffed hands to his waist, preparing for  something.


"I  could have fucked her over a million times by now, I've fought  skirmishes with you all, are you just sick of life Davis? Do you want to  die? Because the way you're acting seems to give me suicidal overtones,  or is nothing getting though to me?" Marko shouted, his handcuffeds  hands curling into fists.


Davis  glared, "you know, I can make your life even more of a misery than it  is right now so I'd be careful what you say around here." He ground his  teeth as he forced the words out. He wanted to kill the guy, but in the  long run, keeping him alive was better. If worst come to worst, maybe  they could use him as a bargaining chip. 


"You're  just trying to bait me now. I'm not listening. You're going back to  your cell. Taylor's done enough damage already trying to befriend you or  whatever the hell she thought she was doing. I won't let it go further.  We have our plans. We're sticking to this my way. And however you're  treated, you'll just have to suck it up and deal with it, Marine."


"Just because you're fighting for us, doesn't mean we're allies. Or friends. You're just doing this to keep your head."


"So I stand alone then. You know what Davis? You undo these  handcuffs and if you beat me in hand to hand combat, I'll listen  without a further word, if I win, you admit you can't control me, I  haven't got a head to keep anymore." Marko pointed to his collar.


"I've  been told you guys hate my kind." Marko was stepping closer. "So show  me that hate, Davis, punch me, show me that you're not the cocksucker I  think you are, or everyday I'm going to taunt you and think you can  justify every fucking bullshit lie, order and half-truth." The marine  raised his hands again, using a finger to pull down one of the sleeves  and revealing a tattoo and said rather proudly.


"Marko  Vachilli. Once a marine, always a marine." written down his forearm.  Marko was clearly a fan of tattoos. "C'mere so I can smash your  organs." 


"And  that's where your loyalty lies. With your Marines. You wonder why we  hate you so much, why we refuse to trust you? That's why." Davis  replied.


"You  want a chance to try and beat me to pulp so you can pull an escape  stunt, think again." Davis called over some men. "Whatever the outcome  of our combat, he tries to escape, shoot him." The men lifted their  guns, listening to Davis instantly. 


Davis  cut the ties on the marines wrist in one swift movement with a knife.  In a second he'd dropped it to throw a punch at the marine with one hand  going to his face, his other going for the Marine's stomach.


Marko  didn't waste the chance to dodge backwards. "Oh nice move there,  cocksucker, trying to catch me like that, I didn't know we were  street-fighting." Marko stepped backwards a few times and streched out  his sholders.


Davis  believed he could outsmart a marine. And a crowd was now starting to  surround the pair. "I'll kill you, Marine. Beat you to a bloody pulp."


"Come  on then, don't you know that a collar is cheating?" The marine moved a  leg back, doing the combat dance as he dashed forward with his hands  outstreched to ram his head into Davis' chin.


Davis  dodged, but it was close. He wasn't much when it came to direct  fighting. He was good with a gun. But he was overconfident that he could  do anything. Unfortunately he hadn't had a Marine's combat training.  That is where the rebels lacked. They only got things done because they  had weapons.


"We're  not cheating. It's for our own protection, that collar. You escape, a  lot of people die. We're not willing to take that risk." He told him,  rushing for the marine trying another punch before using his leg to try  and hook it onto the marines to get him on his back.


The  majority of people were openingly cheering for Davis to come out on  top. A quiet few though, were secretly wanting the Marine to win.


The  marine bent down and spun a 180 with his uninjured leg in the hopes of  decking Davis, heh, decking davis. The marine smiled at his own pun.  "How are you sure I'd go out of my way to tell the Coalition? We stop  fighting, the Coalition turns it focus on fully annexing the Military."  Marko replied, his 180'd leg would probably get twisted with Davis' own.


He was pretty good fighter for a cocksucker.


Davis'  leg got caught up and tangled with Marko's as he struggled to bring the  younger, stronger man down. The only advantage he had was that Marko  was injured. Other than that the odds were against him. 


"No  one stands up to the coalition. If the military took a stance with us  rebels, we'd stand a chance. You don't. You let them do what they want.  You do what you want." He growled. 


"Only  because the Coalition controls what the military needs to fight with,  firearms, grenades, resources." Marko replied with a growl, Marko tried  to flip himself and bring Davis' face into meeting the ground, he was  going to try and get his hands onto Davis' face and make sure that that  face continued to meet the ground. 


Davis  growled himself as he concentrated more on keeping himself upright. His  plan had backfired on him and now he was tangled with the marine and  not able to get the upper hand. Now, Davis was struggling to stay  upright. The scuffle lasted mere minutes as they both struggled to get  the upper hand, then Davis felt his legs go out from under him and his  face hit the floor with the rest of his body. 


He didn't give up the fight though. His hands immediately moving to find Marko's face as soon as he could.


Marko  tried to keep his face up, he felt one of Davis' nails pull on his lip  so hard that it split and blood rushed out of the gap. "Come on. Fight  harder." Marko would then try and grab Davis by the sides of his head  and start mashing his face into the ground, hoping that the repeated  violent impacts would drive some sense into the leader.


"Are. You. Done. Doubting. Me?" He spat, blood flickering on the concrete floor, every impact punctuating the angry voice.


Davis  cried out as his head hit the floor multiple times despite trying to  fight. It was a losing battle. Rebels didn't stand around though. After  4-5 smashes they were there trying to pull Marko off of him. 


"Get  his ass into the cell before I shoot him." Davis managed to grumble,  lying on the floor and trying to recupperate. "I'll deal with him  later." Another idle threat right now but Davis didn't want to deal with  the fact that he'd just got his ass whipped by a Marine in front of  everyone.


The three rebels that had pulled Marko off of their leader, tried to pull him back in the direction of the cell.


Marko  looked from left to right as the rebels grabbed him, bleeding from his  lip, that pull had been really hard. "Come on, you didn't prove yourself  Davis, I know you can fight harder than that, some savior to the rebels  you are." Marko struggled for a bit, trying to rip his arms free, he  woudn't try to run if he did.


It clicked for Marko, it was an explosive collar, if he could get someone close-by...  He could run, someone precious, maybe someone they were unwilling to  sacrifice, but the idea fled his mind, that would be betrayal, and he  was starting to like Taylor.


"Cocksucker."  spat Marko, spilling blood on the concrete again, letting himself get  seized by the Rebels and probably dragged off to the Cell. 


Davis growled. "You caught me at a weak moment, Marine. I will make you suffer." 


With that, Marko was taken away and dumped uncerimoniously back in his cell. 


It  was a while later that Davis was up on his feet. He'd been concussed in  the Med Bay for a few hours and now he was sitting with his men, trying  to think of a plan to control the marine.


"The only person to control me is my wife." One rebel, Kinders, laughed.


"And the boss." Another man, Jaffers, replied.


"True." Kinder's looked up at Davis. None of them dared comment on the earlier events.


"We need a way to control him." The man spoke finally, looking at the two men.


"He's  taken a liking to Taylor. He defended her earlier. Why don't we get her  in on a plan? Seduce him to get what we want, kill him afterwards."


"Sounds like a good plan." Kinders replied to Jaffers.


"Not Taylor." Davis spoke.


"But  they've interacted. They're close. We can get daily reports on her.  Keep her monitored. First sign of trouble and pull her out."


Davis sighed. "Fine." With that, he stood and left, hoping that he'd get Taylor on board properly with this plan they had going.


Marko was leaning on his bed, his posture was making good advantage  of the ground, keeping his injured leg from applying all the weight on  the floor, the marine was still bleeding from the lip, it felt ginger so  Marko tried to avoid touching it, there was nothing to entertain him  and he was wound up from the fight, he'd been in this position, unmoving  for hours.


Marko  decided he'd try and break his handcuffs, wrestling it left and right  and even trying to saw it on the smooth metal of his bed-frame, then  standing up and ripping the mattress up, bending over and started to  gnaw on the fabric, it looked a little silly but finally a spring was  revealed, it was sharp.


Marko placed the plastic strip on it and attempted to poke holes though it, though the success of this operation would be dependant on if someone saw him or not. 


"What?" Cried Taylor as she listened to what Davis told her.


"It's  only to get him to cooperate." Davis sighed. "I didn't like the plan  much at first, either, but thinking of it, it might actually work." 


"I'm  not doing it. It's crazy. He won't fall for it. He hates us as much as  we hate them. He'll see right through it. I'm telling you." She  snapped. 


"You owe me, T. After the stunt you pulled today, you owe me big time." 


Taylor  growled, not liking this one bit. It wasn't that she didn't want to  spend more time with the marine that was starting to intrigue her more  and more. It was the fact that she felt like she was setting him up for a  massive bretrayal of trust. Trust was a big thing between rogues. So  why couldn't it be something between a rogue and a marine. "Fine, I'll  do it. But take that stupid collar off him." 


"No. He would kill you in a heartbeat without that. It's a heavy reminder for him that his life remains in our hands." 


Sighing,  Taylor stood up, looking at Davis one more time before walking to the  door. "This'll backfire big time. I promise you that." 


"As long as he cooperates for the time being, I'm fine with that." Davis grinned.


Taylor  slammed the door and sighed, heading back to the marine's cell. She  opened the door and couldn't help but grin at what she saw. "Well, well,  well. Trying to escape are we?" She smirked, standing there.


"No,  I'm just sick of this dog's leash." replied Marko, he continued to jab  holes in the plastic zipcuffs. "I don't think that escaping would be the  best unless I want a new entire upper body and I don't think  replacements have covered missing brains yet." The marine added, licking  his salty tasting lips.


"Any  reason you don't install fans in your prisoner cells either? I could  really use a break from the heat, this isn't exactly Mexico I know but  it's close enough for my comfort." Marko added, the zipcuffs finally  snapped in half, leaving only two plastic cuffs around each wrist.


Marko walked over to Taylor and folded his arms. "Davis treat you alright?" 


Taylor  watched as the zipcuffs snapped and Marko turned, coming her way. When  he folded his arms in front of her, she was slightly intimidated by his  big  frame compared to her small one. She dismissed the feeling though. She  couldn't let him see that intimidation. He'd use it against her and she  had a job to do. 


"He  treated me fine. I was just confined to my room for a couple of hours.  Then I got bored and I'm back here again. Not that he needs to know  where I am all the time. He's got to understand that I do what I want  when I want. Quicker he learns that, the quicker we'll get on again."  She told Marko.


"Are you alright though? I can take you back to the medic and get your lip checked out again if you want." She grinned.


"Her?  Doctor-Lady would probably stich my lips closed and call it a day, I'll  think that I would rather avoid her and bullets for as long as I live,  she has vendetta worse than you, Davis and your entire friendgroup  combined." Marko replied, pausing to think about it.


"So  your news spreads without security cameras, I have a few portable ones  in the pockets of my suit, I suppose it could earn me brownie points if I  rig em' up around and give you control, well, if they survived the  crash and your friends at least." The dog-tags jingled as he unfolded  his arms and went for the door, attempting to open it and wave an arm in  the direction of the hallway.


"Can we go now?"


"People  gossip. News spreads through gossip. I just had to be outside for two  seconds and I had people telling me about yours and Davis' fight. Funny  thing was, one person told me that there were at least five people in  the crowd wanting you to win." She grinned. "Though if Davis' hears  about that he'll want their heads." 


Taylor  moved out into the hallway. "Where are you planning on going exactly?"  She smirked, surely he couldn't remember which way was where after only  been in the hallway a few times. 


"And those camera's you have. You'd be able to rig them up? They don't tell your men where you are?" She asked. 


"Nah,  just cameras for when you need to hole up, it's for establishing patrol  routes, they don't have an infinite power time either, unless you hook  them up to your power grid, then they do, they're simple, no thermal  imaging or nightvision but still useful." Marko stepped into the hallway  after her, no he did not remember where to go, he was kind of hoping  for signs to be mounted on the walls.


"I'm  glad you had people routing for me, Davis dosen't derserve that  position if he acts like an overprotective parent, I won't use the  launguage I said to him, but it was pretty offensive." Marko had been  told that was too vulgar by Davis, maybe it had set in, maybe not, maybe  Marko didn't feel like being vulgar. Though he wasn't sure if she had heard the kind of taunts he had used.


"Can  we stop by the armory? I'd feel better knowing that if Davis rounds a  corner with a pistol I at least have some kevlar between me and said  pistol." 


Taylor  grinned. "Davis isn't that bad. He's been a father towards me since my  parents died. Or a brother, whichever. He brought me up. He's just  trying to protect me that's all. I sometimes hate it, but I know he's  only trying to do his best. My father was his best friend. They were  like brothers." She explained.


"And  I talked to Davis before I came to find you. He's not going to be  beating you up again. He's still recovering from his pounding by playing  poker with some of the guys. But I'll take you to the armory and we can  see what we have. I'm not sure what our vests are, but they've saved  our lives a good few times. Dunno if they're as good as your own ones,  though."


Taylor  started walking down one of the hallways. "And then we can go see your  suit and see if the cameras are salvagable. The suit isn't. Davis has  had several people rip it to shreds to see if they can replicate it. I'm  sure whatever was inside it, items wise, will be stored somewhere."  


Marko  slid a hand across the bars as they walked, making the good old  'clinking' sound as they moved away from it. "It felt good to give him a  beating, if you don't mind me saying, then again, it always feels good  to beat people who have wronged you." Marko said dangerously, he wasn't  looking in her direction though.


"How  many people have been in your cells before? And did they at least leave  my squads marking plate alone? That's just a hunk of steel painted gray  with an orange marking on it, don't think that'd be useful." Marko  added, his blue eyes trailing across the corridors and marking out  land-marks.


"Well as long as their tough and do the job, I won't mind wearing them."


"You're  our first prisoner outside of the rebels that those cells have held. We  normally keep thieves or anyone that has betrayed the rebels in some  way. I think we've had five people within the rebels held there. Never a  military personnel. You're our first. That is why you are so important.  That's why the collar has to stay on. Davis doesn't want to give you a  chance at freedom and doesn't want us all dead." 


Taylor  had heard what he'd said, about beating someone who had wronged her. It  made her heart beat a little faster as she contemplated whether he  meant her, or just people who'd been wrong'd in general. Either way, she  was going to have to get close to him if she was going to follow Davis'  orders. "Thanks for defending me against Davis then. It means a lot  that a stranger would do that for me, especially as you're been held  hostage." 


The  moved into the armory. "If it's just a piece of junk, then I'm sure we  can have the squads marking plate handed over." She added as she started  shifting through all the clothes they had that they were currently  using as protection. There were trousers, tops, then the vests, each  were adapted to try and help protect them if they ran into trouble.


Marko  looked around at the armory, a couple of weapons here and there and he  had to admit, they were doing a good job at repurposing things, heck,  was that a nail-gun turned into a side-arm. "Good... Job scavanging."  Marko said aloud. "And it wasn't just you that he wronged, who do you  think must be responsible for the deaths of my squad, my imprisonment  and being turned against my fellow soldiers? Clearly Davis is calling  the shots, and he's trying to blame it on me." The marine added,  grabbing a pair of steel kneepads and strapping them around his knees.


THen  he noticed something, was that Duke's laser rifle? They'd sawed off the  broken barrel and it looked like they'd replaced the 50 volt battery  with a quieter, more common three-double A battery slot. "Heh, mind if I  grab that and fix it? No way in hell is that going to work at maximum  efficency, I mean your engies' are good, but not as good as I am." Marko  didn't wait for a yes as he pulled it up, slid back the receiver and  stuck his fingers in it, there were a couple of loud zaps and the rifle  started crackling, green electricity zapping to life inside the barrel  and most of the offline attachments turned on, laser sights, flashlight,  viewfinder.


"Told you." Marko put the rifle back and started looking around for a vest.


"You  have a few rats in your military. They come and give us the  information. That is how we knew that your helicopter was coming. They  told us how many of you would be in it, and what else would be inside.  Davis leapt at the opportunity. If it was the other way around, and the  military had given you orders to infiltrate rebel's hideout because  boss' had received information on our whereabouts, would you have done  it?" Taylor asked, wanting to know what he would have done if the  positions had been reversed. "And what if your orders were to kill, just  like they had been for my parents, what would you have done then?"


When  Marko picked up the rifle, she almost had a heart attack fearing that  he'd use it. She watched as he seemed to check it out though. "Yeah, go  ahead. Take it if you think you can use it. I guess we need something  useful for you to do, because we can't trust you to fight yet. You  wouldn't kill your own men for us and there is no reason why we should  expect that of you." She told him. 


"Grab a vest your size and we'll go check your suit." 


"Salvation  is reserved for those who past the test, Taylor, that's what is drilled  into every recruits head upon induction into the Coalition, Military  handle the fist, Coalition handle the rest, we never heard of the family  killings because we were not involved, but our salvation is in how many  rebels we can slaughter, I was one day or one kill away from going  home, all of my squad was, but we had always focused on missing, you  ever wonder why a lot of Military guys miss? They woudn't if they didn't  have a conscience, we acted useless so we could get out, the  transportation was a cushy job." Marko replied, his voice sounded like a  combination of depression and cruel fact, like he'd already accepted he  wasn't going home.


Marko  took a nearby vest, it was white in color, plastic, steel and kevlar,  just like a military suit only with lower production values, probably a  russian copytype, oh there we go, crylic lettering on the right shoulder  said it was, not that he could read it, he just knew the russians spoke  Crylic or at least wrote it.


"I'd  rather not shoot other people, Taylor, at least with my fists I can  harm or nonlethally takedown enemies, with a gun like that, I can kill  dozens of men, but where is the challange or do I really want to cause a  mother regret and sorrow?" Marko answered, zipping up the suit and  pulling up the ballistic gorget.


"So no, I would never have got those orders, feel free to guess what I would have done though." Marko looked ready to go.


Taylor  stayed silent the entire time he spoke. He had her thinking. Maybe her  memory was wrong. Maybe it wasn't the military that had killed her  parents. Maybe it was the coalition. The truth was, she'd learned a lot  about Marko in the last few minutes that would know that if her life was  in danger, he'd save her - even if he wasn't their hostage. She wanted  to ask how many people he'd killed, but she didn't. 


Horribly  enough, she had a feeling that maybe she'd killed more people than him.  She'd held a gun and shot at people a few times. And she could  confidently say that three people she'd shot at had died because of the  lack of protection. She knew how to use a gun. Davis had taught her from  the age of 13. 


"Let's  go check out what's left of your suit then." Taylor told him. walking  out the room and heading down another corridor. No signs, on the  hallways or corridors. You learned where everything was as a child and  expected it to be ingrained in your mind so you could find everything  quickly and efficiently if you needed to. 


Finally  she stopped at another door and opened it. Marko's suit lay in bits on a  table, and everything that had been found inside was in a tray to the  side. "So, if you're going to help us in our efforts to take down the  coalition, how would you go about it? And what else can you tell me  about those containers?"


The  dissambled suit's left chest-plate had the answer to Taylor's unspoken  questions and maybe more she hadn't thought about yet, there was a list  of kills, but they weren't nameless numbers they were the full names of  the people he'd killed, and after everyone was a fully written  dedication to their death scratched into the orange metal, things that  said "I never meant to." or "Your sacrifice will be remembered, I owe  you my life, not the other way around." They weren't just unknown  soldiers to Marko, they had lives, and he was grateful that he'd won in  the chaotic battlezones, but their deaths would always overshadow his  life.


But  there was something else there, a list of things he wanted to do, it  was proudly announced in black text. "Things I should do after hell."  Number uno was visit Hawaii, second was to send apology letters to the  families of the soldiers he had killed, third was visit the pacifist  monks in Nepal, fourth was invent a timemachine and turn back time which  could have been a black joke. The very fifth though? Marko looked away  from it as he picked though the satchels, nothing was there.


"Ah,  over here." Marko was leaning over a tray, picking up the cameras and a  little control box, there was grenades marked with initials for what  they were for(examples such as:  FRG or EMP.) a couple of disposable  tasers, a spoiled bag of rations(squished by impact or horribly burnt by  the flames.) and a horribly burnt photograph.


The fifth goal? Forget everything in the rain.


Taylor  watched Marko search his own belongings for the things he wanted. And  he found them - and the cameras he'd spoken about before. She nodded and  watched as he picked the things that he wanted and left others. "Okay  then. Sorted?" She asked first.


"Now,  knowing what you do about the coalition and the military, what do you  think our next steps should be in bringing down the coalition. That is  our ultimate goal. We need to know what weaknesses they have or anything  that might help us." She told him. "What would you do?"


It was a question Davis should have asked long ago. But instead, Taylor was asking it.


The  markings plate was missing, odd, Marko took the other shoulder-pad and  clicked it onto his liberated rebel vest. "It won't matter, every path  you chose leads to more ways to die, but that is the sacrifice we all  make, destruction is the thing you should most value, Taylor." Marko  said, folding his arms again.


"But  first I would teach your squads to fight better, the military might  miss on purpose, but you must learn the difference between Coalition  leaders, because the Coalition is the head of the snake, if you were to  kill the leader of every squad and offer them a spot in the rebels, soon  the Coalition would be the only ones left. That would make a lot of  people less hesitant in shooting them. I'm an instrument of violence, so  use me how you like. I should care, but I don't since I have this  fucking collar around my neck, I don't really have a choice to fight it  do I?" Marko said, implying they were as bad as the Coalition because of  the collar.


"If you trust me to teach your men."


"We're  protecting ourselves, Marko." It was the first time she'd spoke his  name. "You have to understand that that collar on you is our protection.  There are children here, lots of them, lots of families, hiding here  because if they are found they'll be killed. We can't take that  chance... the chance of taking it off and having you disappear at any  point." 


"As  much as I want that collar off you because it is degrading, I don't  think I can risk the lifes of everyone here. I've learned a lot about  you and your values in the last while, and I don't think you'd betray  us, but we still can't take the risk. Please understand that." She spoke  quietly. 


"If  it makes a difference, I trust you to teach our men. I want you to  teach me, too. I can learn how to fight. I want to learn how to fight  properly." Taylor told Marko, afraid that he'd say no because she was a  woman.


"Then I'll teach you first, if you can help me teach them, shit will get done faster, have you got a training  room or a room with padded flooring?" Marko said, walking to the door  that led to the hallways. "I'll teach you what I know if you get my  marking pad, it's... sentimental." Marko said, pausing at the door.


"I  can understand it, but like everything here, I disagree with it, if  anything, I told you once that we military have no reason to destroy  what we helped build, the coalition do however, protect yourself, but  remember that if you want me to be a part of your rebel group, that you  have to think of me also." Marko added, looking from left to right in  the hallway, checking for Davis.


"What does your marking pad look like and I'll ask around. I can't garantee getting it back. I'll try though." Taylor told him.


She  started down the hallway trying to think of all the places this marking  pad could be. It had to be with someone. She'd have to try Davis first.  If anyone had it, it would be him. If not, she'd find out who exactly  ripped the suit to shreds and where they put it.


"Gain  our trust, then that collar will come off. You have mine. You just need  more now. You help us learn to fight better, and I'll help you out of  that collar." She added, as she opened a door, showing the room to Marko  where they trained. It was basic. Mattressed lined the floor but there  was no other protection on the walls around the room. They hadn't found a  way to get the mattresses to stay there, yet. 


"Alright,  good enough of a deal, it's about the size of the shoulder I just put  on, except no writing on it except for 'Squad 3' and a double pointed  arrow in bright fluro orange." Marko answered her question, stepping  into the soft room. "I just wonder if Davis is one that needs to trust  me first, he's the one that put it on." Marko added, raising his arms up  to cover his head and putting his leg back, retaining a fighting pose.


"Just how good at you at fighting?" 


Taylor  frowned slightly as she watched Marko, closing the door behind her.  "Dunno. I can use a gun, but that's about it. We haven't been taught  much else. Well girls haven't. The boys get into scuffles all the time. I  guess they just know what to do. If I don't have my gun though, I'm  helpless." She explained, coming to stand near Marko. 


"So, show me what to do then." She told him as she copied his stance.


"Do  you prefer kicks or punches? Give me a kick, swing your leg like you  mean it." Marko said, stepping closer and advertising an unguarded head.  "Guns don't mean shit when an enemy comes at you from behind or charges  at you, marines do that with you rebels because most of you panic, you  need to learn to keep holding the trigger or face him where he wants it,  but you also need to bait him." Marko said, his voice sounded like he  had a lot of experience with this.


His body was completly relaxed, waiting for that kick.


Taylor  looked at Marko. "You sure you want me to kick you? I prefer kicking."  Taylor looked at Marko for a while, looking at his body and where his  weight was distributed, calculating in her head where his weakest point  was. She hadn't been taught to fight. She'd had to learn on her own when  the boys had resorted to picking fights with her. Her mouth got her  into a lot of trouble sometimes.


Suddenly,  her foot kicked out, aiming for Marko's side, hoping to get a good  solid kick at him. She prided herself on the element of surprise.


Marko  felt the air of the blow before he saw it, lashing out for her other  leg that remained on the ground, bending right over in an attempt to  dodge the blow, his other leg snapping in a diagonial fashion in order  to dismount her from the ground. It was a snapkick, Marko had learned it  from Duke while they were both rookies, Duke was a african american  from the Ghetto who was recruited while under the influence of alcohol,  he'd told the Coalition recruiter to suck his dick and had gotten beaten  up by the military boys, then drafted into teh marines in Marko's squad  and they got on well.


They  were like wasps in the military base, stinging the hell out of  Coalition Officers and creating distractions, the Coalition knew they  did it but Marko and Duke had been very good soldiers, but they never  said "I'm sorry." Maybe that was why they were told to deliver the  canisters.


"You  were asking about the canisters? At least I remember someone asking  about them, I told you before, they are designed to interact with the  towns water supply, all I know." He replied.


Suddenly,  out of nowhere, Taylor was flat on her back on the mattress. She hadn't  even seen Marko's leg swiping the ground below before it took her out.  She let out a frustrated sigh. If this was real, she'd be dead now. 


Or maybe not. 


She  lifted her hand into the air. "Oi, Marine. Come help a girl up." If he  came to help her, she'd hook her leg around his and attempt to pull him  off balance. Her free hand would grab her hidden knife and hold it to  his neck if he came down with her move.


Marko  walked over to Taylor and offered her his hand when suddenly his legs  were put off balence, trying to swing his injured leg, then being pulled  down and a knife at his throat. "Nice move, but what if I was your  enemy and had a pistol?" Marko said, placing his arms on either side of  her head and trying to push himself back up, unafraid of her knife.


"Want to try it again?"


"I  guess I'd be dead already." Taylor replied, moving her knife back to  her pocket. "But in normal circumstances I'd also have my pistol here  with me. If I don't I resort to my knife." She told him. 


Taylor  lay awkwardly while Marko was over her, pushing himself up. She caught  herself examining his face and looked away, getting herself up once he  was up. 


"Sure,  let's go again." She grinned getting into position. And now he knew  exactly where her knife was, too. She'd have to keep that trouser pocket  defended so that he didn't get access to it.


"Never  go for the head, it's usually a ploy, to perform a kick like me, go  like you did on bend over." Marko lifted his leg and showed her a  blow-by-blow way of doing it while keeping a leg on the ground, the  lethality of his kick could probably snap a guy's chin straight up. It  was something to admire alright, though, it was easily countered.


"You  can counter it by grabbing the leg or ducking out of the way, heck, if  you're quick enough you can grab the leg, push it up and completly  unbalence your enemy." Marko then resumed his combat position, he left  the head lure again, to see if she'd head his advice.


"Come on then."


Taylor  stood and watched Marko again. He told her not to go for the head. But  then, now, he was expecting her to follow and go somewhere else. Or  maybe he was expecting her not to listen and to go for the head. Taylor  shook her head slightly at her thoughts. He was expecting her to go  elsewhere.


So this time, she kicked and went for his head. 


Marko's  head was blown upwards, a loud crack as his teeth clattered together,  now that hurt. But he woudn't back down, he spun around and tried to  grab the retreating leg with his hands and fling her body over his back  face-first. He could feel his gums crying out in pain, he should have  been expecting that.


Taylor  cried out as her leg was grabbed before it was back on the ground.  Suddenly, she found herself flying over his body face first, landing  with a crash on the mattress. All Taylor could do was lay there stunned.  And then she thought of a back up plan while she was down. She stayed  still, as still as possible, hoping that Marko would come investigate,  and when he got close enough, she'd turn and punch.


Marko  took a step forward, once again falling for her trick, a fist suddenly  contacted his stomach and he doubled over, a breath escaping from his  lips, holding out a hand in surrender. "That was better, way better,  you're a-" Marko took a breath.


Taylor  stood up and grinned. "I have a few tricks up my sleeve. Have to if you  want to survive with a bunch of guys. When my parents died and Davis  took me in, he lived with his brother who had five sons. They didn't  make life easy for me. I had to learn to defend myself. That's how I did  it. I outsmarted them. Made them think they'd won before I pounced."  She smirked.


"But,  teaching me to fight isn't pointless. Because getting to that point  where I'm on the ground could be the opportunity they have to kill me. I  don't want it to get to that point." She told Marko, getting herself  back to her feet.


"Alright,  well you seem to have kicking down pat, how good is your punching."  Marko was working up a sweat from putting all his strength in his upper  body, his bottom lip was bleeding again and he seemed to want to push  further, his raised his fists to protect his fists again, wondering if  they'd go all night.


Was  it night? Or day? Marko didn't know. "Got a way up to the surface, or  are we in a building above ground? This place lacks windows, can't tell,  mucking up my body clock." Marko said, then swung a slow punch for her  chest.


Taylor  nodded her head. "We go through the sewers. We're above ground though  at the moment. The Med bay and armory are underground though, this part  is above ground but at the back of the building away from any attack  zone. " She explained. "I'll have to give you a ground tour later on." 


She  went to duck the punch that came her way but changed her mind and tried  to move to the side, but her reaction time for defending herself was a  lot slower than her reaction time for attacking. His fist caught her  side as she didn't move fast enough.


"Ouch." She grumbled, rubbing her side. Luckily, he hadn't thrown a hard punch.


"Really?  Never ever doubt your first instinct choice, that's what served our  ancestors so well, instinct." Marko pulled down his sleeve and revealed  an ugly scar around his wrist and a little behind it. "Tank tracks, I  dodged a blow and tried to do what you do, got my arm stuck in a moving  tank, only just managed to rip it out before it was torn off." The scar  even had the manufactuer's logo from the tank tracks wheels scarred into  it.


"So believe  me, never ever doubt your first instinct, it will serve you well."  Marko added, then went for another punch, going for the same place as  before.


Taylor  nodded, listening and as the punch came in, she ducked, though it  wasn't low enough fast enough. Taylor was left grumbling again and  rubbing her face where his hand had caught this time. Tricks were  definitely more her style. At least she could learn here. Then maybe  Davis would give her more of a chance when going out. 


Thinking  of Davis. She had a plan to put into play. How exactly, she wasn't  sure. "I want to work on something else. I had a friend once who was  fighting military an coalition forces. He ended up stuck. I couldn't  shoot because he was being used as a human shield. He couldn't get out  of the man's hold. If that happened to me, how'd I get out of it?"


"May I show you then how to get out of it? It involves using you as a human shield, just without the danger." Marko asked.


"Sure,  go ahead." Taylor nodded, turning her back to Marko so he could grab a  hold of her. She trusted that he wouldn't take advantage of the position  to escapse, and hoped that she could take advantage of the situation  for other reasons.


Marko  grabbed her rather ungraitouisly, swinging his arm around her neck and  pretending to hold a gun with his other hand forwards, assuming the  position they were taught to use by the Military with targets that could  be used as shields.


It  was certainly a tough grip. "As you can see, if you struggle too much  you risk exucution by the holder, if you struggle less you risk becoming  a botched sniping attempt or a bullet sponge, you have limited time to  fight back." Marko said into her ear, not loudly either.


"So  you aim for the legs, if you can reverse the hold and become the holder  of the meat-shi- Sorry, human-shield then you can get out of there or  turn the tide of the battle unless they have a sniper, but never ever  leave yourself without a guard, human-shields sometimes get Stockholm  syndrome for some bullshit reason, don't ask me." 


Taylor  let out a shocked cry as Marko grabbed her. She hadn't expected the  slight roughness to it all. It was weird. She felt how close he as and  how he was giving her the instructions through a whisper in her ear. She  turned her head slightly so she could look at him and found her eyes  level with his lips. 


She  could feel his breath on her skin. No time like the present to follow  what Davis said. Without thinking much more about it, she looked at his  lips and then quickly pressed her lips to his. 


This  move had surprised Marko, now, he realised there was another way to get  out of a human shield grip, and that was this. Was he really letting  himself become victum of the previouisly mentioned stockholm syndrome?  He thought of what Duke and Jospeh would say, but they probably woudn't  be saying anything, too busy chasing after angel broads.


It  was more surprising than a .45 to the chest, heck, more surpsing than  the repeated combat zones he'd frequented, he found himself not only  letting the kiss happen but contributed to it before pulling back.


He  opened his mouth for a second, staring like a stuck pig before simply  saying. "You're better than escaping human shield grips than I am." 


"I  wasn't using that as an escape." She muttered quietly. "In fact, that  thought never even crossed my mind." She admitted, standing completely  still. She didn't know what to do or say. After her outburst with him  and her admitted hatred, she didn't know what to do or say. That kiss  had surprised even her.


At least he hadn't pulled back in disgust. 


"So... Well... Um..." For once, Taylor was lost for words. 


"Just  remember that money caused this fight between our forces, and I'm tired  of the backstabbing snakes who are in charge of the Military, did you  know that Duke, Joseph and I had never meant to do this shit, I'm  just... Nevermind." The marine huffed, he felt the same way she did,  maybe even more, he wanted to believe it wasn't stockhold syndrome, but  it felt like it.


"So  where am I sleeping? Don't think I'll be sleeping in the cell anymore,  Davis can suck my- Davis can politely go jump on a moving train before  he can make me stay there anymore." Marko said, dogtags rattling.


"You  can have my room tonight. I'll get something sorted. We can go grab  some food on the way there." She told him quietly. "I'm sorry about your  friends." She finally added. "We didn't mean to kill them. We were  just... We're just trying to find a way to gain an advantage. Our goal  isn't to hurt people." She hoped he understood, but doubted it. With her  kiss his mood had changed. It was best to leave that plan to another  day. 


Taylor moved to the door. "You coming, Marine?" She'd gotten used to calling him Marine now. It just felt right.


The  marine wanted to reply that she could have fooled him, but he  understood, he didn't think she could understood the sacrifices he had  made, but he had wasted half of his time here looking for a fight, now  it felt futile.


"Thank  you for the apology, let's move out." Marko answered back, stepping off  the mattresses and following after her, once again looking for Davis,  he didn't want that hothead to see him spending time with Taylor, he'd  hate to see his reaction, even how laughable it would be.


"What kind of food?"


Taylor  looked away and just walked down the hallway quietly, reflecting on the  scene that had happened in the make shift gym. And on his attitude. He  was giving her the cold shoulder, it seemed. She'd kissed him mainly  because of the 'plan' Davis had set up. But would she have done it  without that plan? Most probably.


"You  get a choice of rice, pasta or potatoes. They're cheap. We can afford  that and save more for technology. You can only chose one. We have some  vegetables to go with it all. And then there's some other bits and  pieces to add. Chicken is the meat. It's the cheapest and most  productive for us too." She told him, leading him down to the mess hall  so they could eat. 


The only problem was is that everyone would be there.


Marko  wasn't really trying to give her the cold shoulder, he wanted too, but  he wanted to be sure it wasn't a trick first, he'd heard of the kind  of saboturing in movies, but in the military? Nah, he was being too  paranoid. The marine thought about what to do for a second as they  entered a mess, he finally settled for a quick slap on the ass.


Yep.  Totally natural and smooth operator, right? Eh, could be better, but  Marko coudn't bring himself to give a fuck. "I like the sound of pasta  and chicken, sounds like something my mother would have cooked up, we  sitting at the cool kid's table?" The soldier wittly remarked, feeling  better at the prospect of food and company that wasn't going to try and  shank him in the dark.


Taylor  turned wide-eyed in surprise as Marko slapped her ass. She hadn't see  that one coming. Luckily, no one seemed to have seen it. But had it been  a second later, they would have, as the hall went from loud and noisy  to quiet whispering. "Not the cool kids, I'm afraid. We're not the cool  kids unfortunately. We can sit on..." Taylor looked around. "That  table." She pointed over to one where a couple of men and a woman was  seated. 


"That's  Harris and Garrett. They're good guys. The one sitting next to Harris  is Anna. She's not too bad either." She smiled and waved over to her  friends before plating up some food. The dinner ladies were about to  protest, but Taylor cut in with both food orders which the women missed  out of subtlity when putting the food onto the plates and handing one to  the Marine and one to Taylor not too kindly. 


Once  they had the plates, she grabbed a couple of cups for water and headed  to the table. "So, who's this handsome devil, T?" Annabelle was a  hopeless flirt despite being in love with Harris. 


"This is Marko." She grinned. "Marko, Harris, Annabelle and Garrett." 


"Good to meet you." The guys spoke. 


"Definitely good to have a bit of eye candy around here." Annabelle smirked. "Maybe you could get Taylor here to settle down." 


Taylor  blushed and kicked her friend under the table once they were both  seated. "I told you they were awful." She told Marko, though smirking  now at her friends on the other side of the bench. None of her friends  cared that he was a marine.


"Holy  shit, you're fucking right." Marko replied at Anna's comment, moving  his hand to offer highfives and fistbumps to who wanted them, sitting  down and sticking a fork into his tray and shovelling some rice into his  mouth, ah that was good. "Woah, you guys aren't packing much in  prisoner food are you? I'd take this over the rice and her attitude." He  nudged his head in the servers direction.


"Nice  to meet you fools, I can't remember if I took potshots at either of  you, but trust me, I missed because I can still see your ugly faces."  Marko knew how to talk to troublemakers like these, they were his  kindred spirits.


"You  guys still spraypainting your names all over my old friends bunkers? I  remember seeing one of your names outside my barracks, jesus, you had us  scrubbing all day with the XO on our backs, think I should repay the  favor, if you'd kindly show me your supplier." Marko added, forking some  chicken into his gob.


"Sorry,  she means Marko, the ultimate badass motherfucker in the sector, so  bad, he got his ass shot down by Davis' crew, pfft, must have been  playing the rock music too loud." The marine added, elbowing Taylor in  the ribs.


"Good  to be our of that cell, can't say I made a good example of Davis'  skull, is he really on that much dope he fights like a hobo with a  broken glass bottle?" 


Annabelle giggled, fascinated by the marine. "Marko. Nice to meet you. Shame I have this one here otherwise I'd be chasing you."


"Hey,  no fair. You give every other guy compliments and leave me hanging."  Harris smirked, knowing that Annabelle was all talk, and completely  loyal to him. He gave her a kiss on the cheek before remembering Marko's  words.


"You  probably did take shots at us, so we shot back. Don't really give a  damn. A lot of people may hate you around here, but I think it's good  your here. I think we will get along. I know all marines aren't bad.  Most are in our situation too. Davis just needs to listen and learn  more. But he has his only little war path marked out." Harris told him.


"And  that was my name, we spraypainted." Garrett grinned proudly. "Good to  know it takes forever to get off." He added. "And yes, Davis is a bit of  a knobhead."


"Hey, Davis has been good to me. He's been like a father." Taylor defended.


"And he's been a shithead to you, too, T." Harris spoke. 


Taylor rolled her eyes. "I'm sure he meant well by it all." 


Harris just looked at her before looking away. "Whatever you say, T." He told her. 


"I'm  afraid I have to go with this awfully blunt rebel called Harris here,  Taylor, if he meant well he woudn't have strapped my neck with enough  explosives to blow me to kingdom come with my ass in my hands." Marko  replied, eating his food and savouring every bite, it tasted like crap  but it actually was better than the prisoner food.


"Hah,  I'm afraid that even if I was free, Anna, I'm a copy of Clint Eastwood  in his mere twenties, so badass I have to turn down every chick I see."  Taylor knew better, maybe. "Nice, Garrett, but coudn't you have thought  of something more creative than "Marines suck dick." I mean if you'd put  Coalition there, I'd have given you a highfive, then shot you in the  knee." Marko replied.


"So  I'm guessing you blokes are the guys that were shouting my name in  their heads as I gave Davis the shock of his life? He pulled my lip  down, not even first date either." The marine shrugged and wiped his  mouth as he shovelled in more rice and chicken.


"So  who came though for you motherfucks, hah, I did but I'm afraid that my  names so hot that the Coalition will be looking for me and their  canisters."


"You'd have to have caught me first to get a bullet to my knee." Garrett grinned, not affected by the Marine's light threats.


"We  were secretly rooting for you. If I've learned one thing since been  here, it's that we need to work with the marines, not against them.  Davis doesn't see it that way though." Harris made sure his voice wasn't  much above a whisper. "He wants marines and coalition wiped out. He  doesn't get that the marines are as much pawns in this as we are."


Annabelle  looked up at Marko when he mentioned the canisters. "There's talk that  those canisters are for poisoning us. Is that true? It goes into the  water supply to kill us off. It's why we've raided shops for bottled  water." She frowned, concerned about the numerous rumours going around  about the stuff.


"Not  sure honestly, as I've said, Coalition wants survivors, not streets of  dead bodies, what's the point of poisoning the entire cities water  supply when it'll effect the very people you're trying to master. No,  it's something worse." Marko said, debating it as he poked the rice  around with his fork. 


"Davis  is an idiot. No offence Taylor, but honestly, we need a smarter guy in  control and Garret, you have the biggest shit-eating grin I have ever  seen, swear to god, once I train you all up, I will focus on you being  my main punching bag." Marko joked, leaning over the table and looking  around for a drink.


"I could really go for some orange juice."


"We've only got water." Taylor said quietly, pointing to the bottled stuff by Garrett. 


"I'll  have an even bigger shit-eating grin once I've finished with you."  Garrett joked right back at Marko. He gave as good as Marko got. "And  what you mean training us up? What's wrong with what we've got now?" He  frowned.


Harris looked at Garrett. "You really have to ask that? We have to have something wrong if we're not winning." 


"What if...No... Nothing." Taylor dismissed. There couldn't be anything like what she'd thought up. 


Suddenly  there was a shout across the hall. "Well, look who it is. That dumbass  Marine. Making friends. Are you more than just friends yet, T? Are you  willingly letting him take control so he can leave and tell his friends  where we are? He should be locked up." A man around Marko's age with  short blonde hair sauntered up with a smirk on his face. 


"You  let him continue fooling you, T and you'll become a traitor. You'll get  us all killed you will. Davis should have listened to my dad when he  said to get rid of you. You're nothing but trouble." 


"Just shut up, Armstrong." Annabelle snapped. 


"Make me." He laughed. "Or are you a coward, T?"


Just after he'd finished his sentence, Taylor flew at him and a scuffle started.


Marko  was laughing when he heard that shout. Great. A guy worse than Davis?  One who was just a grunt and didn't need respect to fight like a fool.  Marko slid a untinsil into his sleeve, holding it lightly with his  fingers. Garret saw this and was about to say something when Marko put  his fingers to his lips. 


Marko  ran over to the fight, he grabbed Taylor by the arm and attemtped to  haul her back, he didn't speak and pointed at Armstrong with his hand,  holding the knife behind his sleeve. 


"Don't start this shit, you won't win."


"Oh  yeah?" Armstrong said, his nose was bleeding, then he charged for  Marko, Marko thought it must have been the adreniline that Armstrong was  feeling when he thought he could take the more expereinced marine.


He let go of Taylor and a punch was thrown for his stomach, he deflected  it with his now free hand and grabbed Armstrong by the collar, swinging  it to the right and smashing Armstrong's head onto a nearby table, the  people sitting at the table jumped up at the sudden event, Armstrong  tried fighting but Marko was better, this was the reason they needed CQC  training.


Then  he grabbed the free hand and slammed it on the table, using his other  hand to hold Armstrong's neck and keep him there, cheek smushed into the  food on one of the plates. Marko then revealed the knife and started to  stab in the gaps, careful to avoid the fingers but making a big fuss  over it.


"Wait,  wait man! Not cool Not cool! I didn't mea-" "Bullshit." They said to  eachother, Marko increased the speed, leaving marks in the metal as the  knife stabbed into it again and again, drawing nearer to the skin.


Armstrong  had stopped begging as the knife finally stopped, another jab away from  his knuckle. Marko let go, and shoved the rebel.


"You willing to let go of your hate and become a better soldier or what?"


Taylor  felt Marko grab her and pull her off the man as she gave a good solid  punch to the nose causing it to bleed. "You fuckin' asshole." She  growled, her language as colourful as the Marine's almost. More  colourful than a girl's should be, anyway. Armstrong had taunted her for  way too long.


"Let  me at him, Marine." She snapped, just as mad at Marko as she struggled  to get back at the man. Then Marko seemed to take over and what he did  was a lot scarier than what she'd been planning. 


"Marko, stop it!" She yelled, just as he seemed to finish his own taunting and let Armstrong go who was as white as a sheet.


Armstrong  looked from Taylor to Marko several times. "Have you in charge of us?  No fuckin' way. Screw you." He growled. Now that he was out of Marko's  grip, he was back to his arrogant self.


"You watch out, T. We're watching you." He smirked, knowing that she knew exactly what he meant.


"Come  on Marine, back to the table." She spoke quietly before turning and  stalking off as Armstrong found some napkins and started to wipe his  face.


Marko  nearly grabbed the knife and threw it at him, how could a guy just  return to being an asshole after being taught a lesson like that, the  knife remained in the table, his hands twitched as he flipped Armstrong  the finger.


"Remember  to keep your eyes on me, Asshole!" Marko shouted, resisting the urge to  actually get violent. Oh boy, he'd never got that hostile in a mess  hall before, it was usually jokes and laughs with Duke and Joseph.


Marko  turned around and returned to the table, pushing his plate forward to  show that he was full. "Ruined appetite." Marko claimed, though the  truth was that someone could actually be too angry to eat.


Taylor  sat and nursed her bruised and cut hand. God that punch had hurt, but  it had felt so good. She left her injured hand in her lap despite her  anger and started to eat her own food. 


"So you've met the jackass worse than Davis." Annabelle spoke finally breaking the silence. 


"He's  only like that because he's Davis' Nephew. All of them are like that.  So is Davis' brothers, Kinders and Jaffers. You should see all of them  together. They're nasty work. Most people allow them to be the fools  they are because they're scared of taking the men on. The rest of us, we  just stay silent and wait for the right time." Harris spoke.


"Not  that it'll change. They've got set views. They blame the military and  the coalition." Garrett told him. "I'll be glad when someone else  decides to take charge."


"Won't  be happening for a long time." Taylor spoke up finally. "Davis isn't  the one you have to worry about anyway. Jaffers and Kinders are the ones  he follows. They tell him to do something, he goes and does it. He just  like being in charge. He's a good guy. He took care of me when no one  else did." It annoyed her that everyone else spoke badly about Davis  when she owed him a hell of a lot. Even if things had been rough because  she was female, she couldn't just disrespect him like everyone else. So  she made excuses for him.

Garrett focused on the cameras for a while. It was complicated to people who hadn't worked with them before, but he had. He knew them even after a couple of years outside of military training and influence. 


"I think I have all the materials I need lying around the compound in places. Everything except the 8 televisions. We have one that works. Two lying around apparently broken and the rest we'd have to raid. Though, saying that if we're gunna raid a place, might as well take 8 new ones." He commented, toying with a camera in his hand, it was a few hours after the initial talk in the blue print room. 


They'd had a few hours training where only a handful of people had turned up, a lot had refused on principle. But still, at least some people were turning up to try and be better fighters.


Marko was sweaty from teaching the people who had come proper combat, Garrett and him had fought quite well, there was certainly combat training behind it, this rose a lot of suspicions and Marko wanted to act on it. 


The marine looked at the cameras and shook his head. "Garret, I need to know something, and I'll know you're lying if you say no. Were you in the military?" Marko asked, his voice wasn't hostile but there was a suspicion behind it.


Garrett loooked across at Marko before looking back at the camera's shrugging slightly. "Might've been. Why'd you ask?" He said, glancing around before concentrating on the camera he held again. 


"You fight too well for a rebel, plus you've known these cameras before, it's only a logical step forward." Marko folded his arms and looked around. "Davis know that? You're not a spy are you? Not that'd you answer that of course." Marko said, standing next to Garrett as he examiend the camera.


"Focus em' in a bit more, we need to see shadows too."


Garrett stayed silent for a few minutes, thinking about what he should and shouldn't tell Marko. "Davis doesn't know. And no, I'm not a spy. Taylor, Harris and Annabelle are my friends. They're the only ones that know my background. I don't want the others knowing." He told Marko quietly.


"If Davis found out, he'd be a prick. I've been here for the last couple of years. If they suddenly found out I used to be military, shit would hit the roof. It's better just to keep silent about it. I'm hoping that Davis gets what's coming to him soon, and then someone like Taylor can get in charge of things. Then maybe things'll get done." Garrett told Marko. 


Marko shrugged. "I'm sure, but you need to tell me these things earlier. I need to know, otherwise bad things can happen, not a threat, just a fact, ignorance leads to injury, y'know?" The marine pointed out.


Marko patted Garrett on the back. "So what now, tech?"


"I would have told you, sooner or later." Garrett commented. "I knew you'd figure it out today anyway." He looked down at the camera. "They're not as badly damaged as I first thought. In fact I've got them all working. I'll fix them up for shadows, too." 


"Now, we just need to get the raid underway for televisions and then we can start on the setup. I'm thinking of getting some outside walkies. That way there isn't a chance that Davis will overhear. He's got it bad against the military. I'm hoping that he doesn't have anything big planned. We're not what they think we are." Garrett told him, it was nice that someone was around that understood him for once.


"Yeah, yeah. I see your point." Marko replied, tapping his chin. "Yeah, walkie talkies would be good, since I want to avoid Davis, I have a feeling that he's going to go out of his way to make my time here shit." The marine said, gesturing on a point on the map.


"We need to set defences there too, armored patrols, swear to god, real military and coalition forces could come here and kill us all, you above all should know this, kids don't matter in the long run, this is the Coalition, we don't matter either to them, only these canisters, which reminds me, we should check on that after the raid." Marko finished, really wanting a coffee.


"Yeah. Davis does that." Garrett told him. 


"I've checked on the canisters. Well, as far as checking can go. Davis has them under a tight control. He doesn't want any of us doing anything with them until he knows what the liquid is inside them." Garrett nodded at the map. "Harris can get a couple of guys together and do armored patrols. And we have several escape routes. That's most likely to be the point of attack..." Garrett pointed to the same place Marko had, "...from the coalitions and military. We also have exits here, here, here and here." He continued pointing. "They won't manage to cover them all."


Garrett paused for a moment. "Do they still have scientists moving back and forth between places. I was thinking, as unethical as this is, maybe we should plan a kidnap. Maybe they can tell us something about the canisters." Garrett suggested.


 "We got cameras nearby those exits so it should be fine, I'll be watching damn near 21 hours a day, probably less. We probably should, but most of Coalition scientests work in military bunkers, you'd need my identity to get me in. Scanners and such." Marko replied, scratching his beard.


"We could go if it was the two of us, try to avoid casulties, need a distraction but if the two of us can get in, get out and get here with no hitches, it'd be good. Not sure how they are with tracking their prized minds though, might have to beat him up till he tells us what he's got." Marko added.


"Harris sounds good."


"I don't think we can get you out of here with that thing on your neck. We're going to have to get it off you some how if we leave. Do you know any coalition maps in that mind of yours, so we know where to go?" He asked.


"And Harris is good. He's got a good head on his shoulders. Him and Annabelle are madly in love despite her flirting with most men. It's harmless. Which, reminds me. The way Davis runs this rebel environment has to change. We'll get nowhere if he's here running the place."


Garrett paused a minute before continuing. "Which got me thinking a while back... If we can get rebels on our side - wanting to follow us and our plans and ways of doing things, maybe we can shift power to us, Marko. Then we could get things done right. Maybe we could stop the coalition. We're the closest to them. And I know a lot of military men who'd follow our command more than the rebels in taking the coalition down." He stated.


"I can see that happening. But we can't just knock his block off, we need to trick him into doing something really stupid, something that'd get him kicked off the perch so violently that he coudn't protest when we clean up the mess and take over." Marko answered, thinking about maps.


"A couple, I'm better at remembering names and faces, not maps." Marko admitted, looking at the cameras and then the maps.


"If we got military men, itd make it easier for us to take down the man, but we'd need to make sure they aren't Coalition lovers, a lot of marines are flooding to them, I dunno if you heard but there was an entire platoon a week back that joined up with the Coalition for the food of all things." Marko shrugged.


"Ah, I figured that was harmless, she looks tied enough as it is." 


"Well, maybe we can talk Taylor into... you know, catching him offguard with something. These cameras have to come to some use, right?" Garrett suggested with a shrug. 


"I mean, if we can get solid evidence of something that would disgust people, it would cause an outcry and a power shift. Taylor is the only one close enough to get him where we want. He'd be suspicious if it came from anyone else, I think. Unless it came from you. He'd expect you to cause trouble." 


He put the camera down. "Other than that, I'm not sure what else can be done."