Rick felt Laeil's weight leave him, and the pain of the torrent of slices stopped, but the pain from his wounds continued. Blackness, everything was swimming, and he knew it was over. He was surprised he wasn't dead yet, but through the blackness he made out Dacey, coming to his rescue.
Rick gave the best smile he could at the girl, as he hung on to every word she spoke. He knew they would be the last he heard.
"T-This is a real stupid t-thing to say. B-But I think I was falling for you. B-Bonnie and C-Clyde right? T-That might have been c-closer to the mark than y-you t-thought."
"We...were....sure a hell of...a team huh?....shame...it has to...end...now...Bonnie and Clyde...have...nothing on us."
Rick tried to laugh, only resulting in him coughing up more blood.
"Y-You're a fucking hero, you got t-that? The M-marines would have been proud to h-have you"
Rick didn't know what he would do without Dacey. She knew how to say all the right things. Inwardly, he smiled, and he saw her salute him. Rick struggled and raised his right arm, and despite the pain, gave his partner, Dacey, a shaky salute back.
"Be...safe...I'll be...looking out for you up there...I promise...Semper Fi..."
Rick's eyes closed, and he lay still, blackness finally taking over.
----------------------
"Why do you want to become a marine?"
Rick looked at the recruiting officer, unsure of what to say. There were many reasons he wanted to join the marines. He grew up just knowing that the military was where he was going to end up. Though what one, overlying reason was it that compelled Rick Holeman to join the marines. To join up with men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect America.
"I want to become a marine because I want to protect people. This country means everything, not just to me, but to the millions of people who live here. It goes beyond the country, I want to serve with people who I can relate to. I want...well honestly I want to kick some terrorist ass."
The recruiter smiled and shuffled some papers.
"Well Rick, I think you have what it takes to become a marine. You're JROTC record is outstanding, you've attended many functions and I can tell you that you'll go through many more here in your senior year. All you have to do is sign your name here. You'll be making a commitment to head out to officer candidate school. You'll become an officer in the United States Marines. Is that a commitment you're ready to make?"
Rick didn't even have to think about it.
The answer was yes.
Grabbing the pen, Rick Holeman signed his name.
Rick Holeman
"Thank you Rick. Good luck with the rest of your senior year."
----------------------
BOY NUMBER 119, RICK HOLEMAN -- DEAD
25 STUDENTS REMAIN
The Hardest Button to Button
He... he's gone.
"S-Semper F-Fi," Dacey said to Rick's body, her voice cracking. What was she supposed to do now? There was always trying to keep up Rick's 'Hunt the killers' plan, but that had never even flown. They hadn't managed to take down even one of the 'bad guys'. It had just been one huge failure.
A failure that had somehow got them both into what? The last thirty people of the game? Maybe that's where the phrase 'slipping under the radar' applied. Dacey could try hunting down the person who had done for Rick, but she hadn't got a good enough view of his attacker to be sure of an identity and besides... if they had managed to take out a trainee marine, what chance would a soccer player have?
How could this happen? We were making it stick, were avoiding getting into any major trouble and yet... this has to- urgh! I'd say this were unfair if that wasn't so damn ridiculous. This has been happening to everyone here for the past... what? Ten days? I just never paid too much attention because I only transferred her recently. Now that it affects me, I sit up and take notice, but before I couldn't care less, so long as Rick and I were okay.
So stop being so selfish and try not to die, at least for a little while longer.
Dacey felt like just sitting there next to Rick's body and crying all day long. Why had she saluted him, of all things? She's just told him, or at least, tried to tell him her feelings. There were all sorts of things she could have done, kiss, hug (albeit gingerly) ... anything.
But maybe a salute was more appropriate.
I can't just stay here. Somebody will have heard the gunshots, maybe will be on their way to pick up the pieces, clean house.
Dacey shivered.
Or maybe there's so few people left alive nobody is close enough to hear...
She stood up, wrenching her stare from Rick's dead body. He was gone, there was no point dwelling on it any longer. Casting around, Dacey spotted Rick's gun on the floor and she picked it up, holding it a little apprehensively. It was one hell of a powerful gun, but it had let Rick down. She spent a little while fiddling with it, and eventually figured out it was jammed. A while later, she managed to figure out how to get the thing working again. Dacey had to use the instructions for the thing, being that she was clueless about guns. Afterward, she decided to give it a testfire. Holding it with both hands, she aimed at the wall of the showers before squeezing the trigger.
It sounded like a cannon going off, and the sheer power of the thing knocked her flat on her ass, jarring her wrists as it did so. Jesus christ is was powerful. It was a good gun, but Dacey doubted she'd be able to use it well. Still... it wa sbeter to take it along than leave it behind...
Dacey transferred the gun's ammunition from Rick's pack to her own then, at last, stood above his dead body.
"I let you down," she whispered. "I'm so sorry," Dacey felt tears welling up and she turned away and began to walk.
She'd spent long enough here already, it was time to move on.
((Dacey continued in Wild International))
"S-Semper F-Fi," Dacey said to Rick's body, her voice cracking. What was she supposed to do now? There was always trying to keep up Rick's 'Hunt the killers' plan, but that had never even flown. They hadn't managed to take down even one of the 'bad guys'. It had just been one huge failure.
A failure that had somehow got them both into what? The last thirty people of the game? Maybe that's where the phrase 'slipping under the radar' applied. Dacey could try hunting down the person who had done for Rick, but she hadn't got a good enough view of his attacker to be sure of an identity and besides... if they had managed to take out a trainee marine, what chance would a soccer player have?
How could this happen? We were making it stick, were avoiding getting into any major trouble and yet... this has to- urgh! I'd say this were unfair if that wasn't so damn ridiculous. This has been happening to everyone here for the past... what? Ten days? I just never paid too much attention because I only transferred her recently. Now that it affects me, I sit up and take notice, but before I couldn't care less, so long as Rick and I were okay.
So stop being so selfish and try not to die, at least for a little while longer.
Dacey felt like just sitting there next to Rick's body and crying all day long. Why had she saluted him, of all things? She's just told him, or at least, tried to tell him her feelings. There were all sorts of things she could have done, kiss, hug (albeit gingerly) ... anything.
But maybe a salute was more appropriate.
I can't just stay here. Somebody will have heard the gunshots, maybe will be on their way to pick up the pieces, clean house.
Dacey shivered.
Or maybe there's so few people left alive nobody is close enough to hear...
She stood up, wrenching her stare from Rick's dead body. He was gone, there was no point dwelling on it any longer. Casting around, Dacey spotted Rick's gun on the floor and she picked it up, holding it a little apprehensively. It was one hell of a powerful gun, but it had let Rick down. She spent a little while fiddling with it, and eventually figured out it was jammed. A while later, she managed to figure out how to get the thing working again. Dacey had to use the instructions for the thing, being that she was clueless about guns. Afterward, she decided to give it a testfire. Holding it with both hands, she aimed at the wall of the showers before squeezing the trigger.
It sounded like a cannon going off, and the sheer power of the thing knocked her flat on her ass, jarring her wrists as it did so. Jesus christ is was powerful. It was a good gun, but Dacey doubted she'd be able to use it well. Still... it wa sbeter to take it along than leave it behind...
Dacey transferred the gun's ammunition from Rick's pack to her own then, at last, stood above his dead body.
"I let you down," she whispered. "I'm so sorry," Dacey felt tears welling up and she turned away and began to walk.
She'd spent long enough here already, it was time to move on.
((Dacey continued in Wild International))