The Yard

His scar stretched uncomfortably as he focused down the sights of his assault rifle with his good eye. He still wasn't quite used to being a "lefty", but it was better than the alternative. Shane slapped the trigger right after lining up the shot. A burst of three rounds broke out over the firing range. He didn't need to move to know that he was off target, even if he'd hit the target itself. Hits were not kill shots... and he was a marine, damn it! He wasn't paid to miss or wound. He was paid to kill so that others could live.

It was the standard exercise he went through since his injury. His good eye gets ruined, as did his boyish good looks. As soon as he recovered, he had to shave for the first time. Was it three or four years ago now? Now he spent every day practicing his off hand because he couldn't aim properly anymore. And if he couldn't aim, he couldn't do his job.

Realigning his shot, Shane pulled the trigger again, firing another burst. This time he did walk down to view the target. the first shot was closer to a kill zone and the third shot was in the head, due to recoil. The second barely missed the neck. "Fucking horrible." Shane muttered, squinting with his bad eye to sharpen his view of the target. "If we get attacked, I won't last ten minutes... especially if I aim like this and can't control the kick."

He had been on duty when he heard that the weather had apparently cut off communication with ATLAS. If he were the Covenant, now would be the best possible time to attack. A blizzard, despite its dangers, was the perfect cover for an assault.
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(Meanwhile... in the barracks)
Jack yawned as he flicked open his lighter, igniting the cigarette that was clamped between his lips as he continued to lie in bed staring at the ceiling above him. The nicotine fed his addiction and he breathed in deeply, taking a long drag from the burning tobacco. It was too cold here at Echo... cold enough that Jack wanted to grab his flamethrower and do what the damn brass wouldn't: fucking stay warm. The cold made him move slower. Fire... he couldn't get enough of. The more fire there was, the more he wanted to make.

Flicking his ashes off to the side, Jack blew a large cloud of smoke out and stared at it. Today he was off duty like normal. There wasn't much need for a Hellbringer like him unless the base was attacked. In which case he was expected to be ready. A few minutes more and Jack was pulling out his second cigarette was the day, lighting it before crushing the butt of the first between his fingers.

Jack continued staring at the ceiling and couldn't shake the feeling that the reason for his deployment to this fucking ice cube would make itself clear very soon.

Jean stopped firing to reload when Shane asked her, "Jean, there's something I've been wondering about for a while now: in weather like this, what do you do if we get attacked?" She put her gun back in the holster. "Honestly, I don't know." She smiled to him. "Originally, I was to fly to ATLAS and warn them, help evacuate. But this weather is too dangerous to fly in, so the entire evac team are grounded till it fades." She looked over to see Jack walking across the yard. "What about you? I mean the blizzard will obscure your view from the trenchs and nests."

"What about you? I mean the blizzard will obscure your view from the trenches and nests." Jean asks, causing Shane to smile slightly.

"I'm a marine. I'll handle well enough." He said in an almost boyish manner. "The UNSC once offered me early retirement for my eye. After all... I can't see quite as well as I used to. I turned them down and said I was fine. It's that more than the weather that will hinder me. But I don't regret it at all." He continued smiling as he reloaded his sidearm calmly without even glancing at it. "After a while it all becomes natural. Probably like flying is to you. Only I don't have to worry as much about the weather."

Shane glanced at the target and shook his head. "Besides... if I retire at my age, what do I do with my life? I enlisted as early as I could, after all." He glanced over when he heard the medic Valerie Mallard walking closer. "Well, well... hey doc. What brings you out to our little piece of frozen hell?" He asked, holstering the pistol and picking up his assault rifle, intending to load a fresh clip.
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Jack shook his head and sighed as he again passed by the group that was gathering at the firing range, the new carton of smokes clutched in his hand. How the fuck was he supposed to spend his free time on this frozen rock when there wasn't any action?

Blowing another cloud of smoke from his mouth, the Hellbringer walked down to the armory where he'd left his armor after it had been cleaned a few days before. If there wasn't anything to do, he might as well polish his flamethrower and armor until it could blind the fucking Covenant.

Jean stopped climbing the stairs as the alarm went off, "Covenant forces approaching." She heard as she started running back down the stairs. She pushed open the doors and watched as men in armour ran back and forth, readying their guns or climbing the tower steps to the sniper nests. She ran through them doing her best to avoid men and women alike. Once she reached her hornet, she climbed in. "I'm a shit aim with a pistol but give me a hornet with a turret and bob's your uncle." She said to herself as she lifted the hornet up a bit to station it in a better place.
She looked out the windscreen and she could see the dark silhouettes approaching the base, she flicked a switch and her communicator connected with Major Braxx. "Sir, I can use the turrets on my hornet as backing fire." She suggested, her hand shaking just a little.