Chapter 15: Into the Hellfire.

The sun hung high in the afternoon sky, casting shadows over the battlefield as the teams charged forward. Dust kicked up in thick clouds as boots pounded the earth, the ground trembling beneath the weight of the assault. Ava led her team with Talon close behind, sprinting across the open terrain like wolves closing in on their prey. The Reclaimers were caught completely off guard. Confusion washed over their ranks as they fumbled for their radios, but all that met their frantic attempts at communication was static. The silence was suffocating.

Talon’s team struck first.

A grenade sailed through the air, landing perfectly in a fortified bunker. The explosion was deafening. The blast sent limbs and shards of metal scattering into the air, painting the bunker's remains in blood. The screams of the dying were swallowed by the thunderous roar of more detonations as Talon's fighters advanced without mercy. His soldiers swept through the smoking ruins, gunning down any Reclaimer still drawing breath, their assault relentless and unyielding. Blood sprayed across their faces as they executed survivors at point-blank range, leaving none to fight back.

Ava’s team stormed the enemy lines in brutal synchrony. She was a force of nature, her sword flashing through the air in a deadly arc. The first Reclaimer she encountered never stood a chance—the blade cut clean through his chest, the man's eyes wide with terror as he collapsed, his body crumpling to the dirt like discarded trash. Ava’s movements were fluid, calculated, and vicious. Every strike was designed to kill, every sweep of her sword severed limbs, sliced through necks, and ripped through torsos. The Reclaimers fled before her, but there was no escape.

"Artillery! Light 'em up!" Ava’s voice roared through the radio, her command fierce and unrelenting.

The sky responded. It erupted into a cascade of fire and death as the Sentinel artillery unleashed its full fury. Explosive shells fell from the heavens like judgment, ripping the Reclaimer compound to shreds. Concrete walls crumbled like sand, bunkers and defensive positions were obliterated, and the ground itself seemed to tremble under the relentless barrage. Reclaimer soldiers were torn apart, their bodies thrown into the air by the force of the explosions, limbs shredded, faces ripped away by shrapnel. Those that survived stumbled through the dust and debris, disoriented and bloodied, only to be gunned down by Ava’s team.

The deep, bone-rattling thrum of Sentinel .50 caliber machine guns echoed through the madness. Mounted atop armored vehicles, they unleashed torrents of lethal rounds that sliced through the Reclaimers’ defenses like they were nothing. Those who attempted to regroup were torn apart, their bodies ripped open by the powerful rounds, leaving nothing but red mist and mangled flesh in their wake.

Ava surged forward with her team, rifle raised. She unloaded round after round into the enemy as they scrambled for cover, their cries of panic barely audible over the cacophony of gunfire and explosions. Blood splattered across Ava’s face, her rifle kicking against her shoulder as she mowed down Reclaimers without hesitation. Her eyes, once filled with focus, now burned with a ferocity bordering on bloodlust.

As they advanced deeper into the compound, Talon’s team flanked from the opposite side, cutting down Reclaimers with ruthless efficiency. Grenades bounced into tight clusters of enemy soldiers, their detonations sending bodies flying. The ground was painted in gore as Talon’s fighters pressed forward, shooting anyone who moved, the sharp crack of rifles mingling with the roar of explosions.

Overhead, Miko’s sharpshooters fired with deadly precision. Each shot was a death sentence. Reclaimer machine gunners collapsed one by one as the snipers found their marks, sending them tumbling from their nests. Their bodies hit the dirt with dull thuds, rifles clattering from their lifeless grips. Miko’s team continued to rain death from above, ensuring the Reclaimers had nowhere to hide.

Suddenly, a missile streaked from a distant bunker, striking one of the Sentinel artillery units in a fiery blast. The explosion ripped through the air, the artillery piece obliterated in a single, catastrophic blow. The Reclaimer gunners seized the opportunity, opening fire with renewed ferocity. Bullets tore through the air, shredding through cover and sending the Sentinel forces ducking for their lives. Ava and her team were pinned down behind the burning wreckage of a vehicle, the relentless hail of bullets keeping them from advancing further.

“We’re pinned!” Ava snarled, wiping blood and grime from her face. Her team huddled beside her, their breaths ragged and strained, sweat mixing with the dust and blood caking their skin.

Talon’s voice crackled through the comms, barely audible over the chaos. “We need to take out those nests!”

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Ava gritted her teeth. “Covering fire!” she barked to her team.

Her soldiers rose from cover, unleashing a furious barrage of gunfire to suppress the Reclaimer gunners. Bullets zipped past Ava’s head, clanging off metal and sending sparks flying. The air was thick with the acrid smell of smoke and blood. Bodies lay scattered across the battlefield—some Reclaimers, some Sentinels. There was no mercy here. Only survival.

With a grunt, Ava slammed a fresh magazine into her rifle. “We end this now!” she growled, preparing for the final push.

Her sharp eyes locked onto the machine gun nest that had pinned down her team, its heavy fire cutting through the chaos like the reaper’s scythe.

"Miko, I need cover!" Ava barked into her radio, her voice sharp with the tension of battle.

Up on a ridge, Miko’s sniper scope tracked the enemy gunners. His breathing was steady, his finger light on the trigger. "I've got you, Ava," he murmured, exhaling as he squeezed the trigger. A single, precise shot echoed in the distance, followed by a second and third. Each shot hit home, sending Reclaimer gunners sprawling lifeless into the dust.

"Move!" Ava yelled, signaling her team to advance.

They moved like ghosts through the smoke, darting from cover to cover, their rifles snapping in tight, controlled bursts. Each step forward was gained through grit and precision, clearing a path to the machine gun nest. Grenades flew from their hands, landing in the heart of the enemy positions. The explosions ripped through the nest, the sound like thunder crashing in their ears, followed by the screams of the dying.

"Nest clear!" Ava shouted, her voice ragged with exhaustion but triumphant.

Her team began to regroup, but just as they moved, a hidden Reclaimer squad unleashed a deadly hail of gunfire. The shots cut through the air with a brutal swiftness, and before Ava could react, pain exploded in her side, a searing agony that tore through her body like a hot blade. Another bullet hit her back, knocking the wind from her lungs.

Ava’s legs buckled. She crumpled to the ground, her rifle slipping from her grasp as blood pooled beneath her, staining the dirt. She gasped for breath, her vision swimming as the world around her began to blur.

"Ava's down! She's hit!" The frantic call crackled through the radios.

The moment Talon heard the call, the world around him shifted. His heart seized in his chest, the battlefield fading into the background as a single thought pounded in his mind: **Ava**. His best friend. His sister in arms. Without hesitation, Talon charged through the fray, his rifle spitting death as he tore into the enemy ranks. He moved like a storm, relentless and unforgiving. Reclaimers fell before him, gunned down without mercy, their bodies collapsing into the mud as he forced his way through the chaos.

When he reached Ava, her blood was soaking through her tactical gear, pooling beneath her in a dark, spreading stain. Talon dropped to his knees beside her, his hands shaking as he lifted her into his arms. "Don’t you dare give up on me," he snarled, his voice raw with fear and fury. Ava’s eyes fluttered weakly, barely able to focus on him.

"Stay with me, Ava," Talon growled, hoisting her onto his shoulder. His mind raced, his heart hammering in his chest. Every second mattered. Every breath she took felt like it could be her last. Talon sprinted back toward their lines, his legs burning with the effort, but he didn’t care. Gunfire erupted around him, bullets zipping past his head, but he never stopped. His rifle barked in short, controlled bursts, each shot a desperate plea to keep her alive. He felt the heat of rounds whizzing past him, some grazing his rig, but none of it mattered. All that mattered was getting Ava to safety.

Talon’s face was a mask of determination and fear, his eyes wild with desperation. The Reclaimers were everywhere, but he blasted through them with the ferocity of a man possessed. One Reclaimer, still trying to mount a defense, leveled his rifle at Talon, but before he could pull the trigger, Talon dropped him with a single shot to the chest, the man’s body collapsing into the dust with a final, gurgling breath.

Finally, Talon reached their line, his breathing ragged and labored. He gently laid Ava down behind the cover of a wrecked vehicle. "Medic!" he screamed, his voice breaking as he knelt beside her, clutching her hand. Ava’s breaths were shallow, her chest barely rising and falling. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, her face pale and slick with sweat.

"Ava, you stay with me, you hear me?" Talon’s voice trembled, fear coursing through him as he held her close. But Ava’s gaze was distant now, her grip weakening. She stared up at the sky, her lips parting as she whispered a name.

"Ethan…"

Talon’s throat tightened. He squeezed her hand, refusing to let her go. "Hold on, Blondie. Just hold on." But her eyes began to close, her breaths faltering. The medics swarmed around them, shouting orders, but Talon barely heard them. All he could see was the blood, so much blood, pouring from her wounds.

A scream tore through the battlefield, a Sentinel falling to the ground as a Reclaimer shot him through the chest. Another ADF soldier collapsed, clutching his leg as blood poured from the jagged wound. All around them, men and women were dying—Sentinels, ADF, Reclaimers. The air was thick with the scent of blood and gunpowder, the screams of the wounded and dying blending into the roar of battle.

But for Talon, time stood still.

He sat there, cradling Ava’s hand as her life slipped away. The world was chaos, but in that moment, nothing else mattered. He had lost friends before—too many to count. But losing Ava? That was something he couldn’t bear. The weight of it crushed him, the fear that this might be the moment she was taken from him.

Ava’s breaths grew weaker, her eyes fluttering shut. The medics worked frantically, but Talon knew. He felt her slipping away, and it broke him. The tears he had held back for so long finally fell, streaking down his dirt-covered face.

The battle raged on, but for Talon, it was silent. The only sound he could hear was the slow, fading heartbeat of his friend, the woman he had fought beside for years.

And then… nothing.