(This is the second part of the story, scroll down and you'll see part one.)
RAM (11/23/29)
....one....two....three....four.....
Four. That was all the RAMs I could pick up on the comlink.
SOUND OFF!
RA9855485, sir!
RA8985594, sir!
RA4584933, sir!
RA4533245, sir!
RA87531344 was missing. I had sent him out on the right flank for a forward scan, but now I could not raise him on the comlink. Did he run into a squad of blues? If he had he should have had time to signal for help.
ALL UNITS CONVERGE TOWARD THE RIGHT FLANK IN SEARCH OF RA87531344. PROCEED WITH CAUTION. LACK OF IDENTIFICATION MAY BE DUE TO ENEMY SABOTAGE.
I moved towad the right, wondering what had happened. My arms and legs were still extended, this type of ground made it close to impossible to use wheels, and I still carried the LaserRifle.
I did a scan with my ground radar and spotted what seemed to be the arm of the RAM we were looking for. I approached cautiously, and stopped about ten feet from the arm.
RA87531344 FOUND. PROCEED WITH REGULAR PLAN AND FORMATION.
RA87531344 had not been paying attention to his surroundings and had wandered into a bed of quicksand. His large bulk sunk him so fast that he did not even have time to signal his dilemma. As the last minute he had extended his arm to absolute length in hope of securing himself to the surface. But the arm had not proven adequate to the task and snapped off.
I did a left face and resumed the march. Now there were only five of us. I estimated our time before we reached the blue camp at three hours maximum.
This jungle was not the best option for a RAM to fight in, but we would have to do. We cannot always pick the terrain we war in and must make due with what we get stuck with.
1300
Clown (11/23/29)
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* my mind was fading on me again. Ever since that day when I became known as Clown m y mind would have periods of shutting down. I would be doing something, and then ping! nothing, and the next thing I knew it was two hours later. f all the changes in me this was by far the most frustrating. The other things I could get used to, I knew what I could expect of them, but this? This shut down of my mind struck anytime and whenever it felt like it. There was no rhyme nor reason to it. And it scared me.
(Perhaps one day my mind would fade away and forget to come back.)
The first thing I heard when I came to was 562 REPORT TO COM TENT IMMEDIATELY. I looked down on my uneaten breakfast and out to the sky throught the tent window. I saw a grunt I knew vaguely heading for the Com tent. What was going on? I rose and left my breakfast behind, to follow the grunt.
When I reached the Com tent I waited outside a tent opposite it, and watched. Three more grunts arrived, and three RAMs. I tried to think back to any rumors I might hav heard that would indicate what was going on, and was struck by my own stupidity. They were going to send a squad outside. Was my mind falling apart?
I turned and raced away. Which is not saying much, running with a roller and foot is not easy and twice I fell. I ignored the laughter and requests for more and continued on toward my tent. They couldn't leave before I got back. This might be my last chance to have the mind field turned off.
I fell into my tent and burrowed under my bunk. Where was it? There I had it, a small black box that I jammed into a pack and then put the pack on. I hurried back toward the Com tent and made it just as they were about to turn off the mine field.
It wasn't hard to convince them to take me with them. They might need a few good laughs along the way, they figured.
1245
Dogface (06/14/08-11/23/29)
(Remembrance)
I was born in the year of the Twenty Second Century Lord 2109 to my parents. Since I was born to them they had to be my parents and nobody else's. I had two, one mother and one father. The city of my birth was New York Philadelphia in the country of Amrerixco.
Enough of the vital statistics. What of the personnel side? My Pop was one of the well-to-do. He was the third cheif for the computer of the East Coast. A very good position to have, it entitled him to wealth beyond measure and power comparable to only a few. My Pop was a pretty good Pop, not that I had much chance to cpmare since he was the only Pop I had ever had. When I was a wee lad he would come into my room after the robomaid had tucked me in and tell me stories. I still remember some of the stories today. Lance the hero and his trusty computer companion Mark I always had to clean up the mess Frank and his renegade robot made. But good, and better mechanics, always triumphed in the end.
My seventh birthday I'll awlays remember as something special. That was the day Pop brought me to work with him and showed me Mark. Mark was the computer that ran the East Coast. It was awesome, a sight I will never forget as long as I live.
When I got older Pop would bring me with him when he went to the Arena. It was at the Arena that I gotmy first sight of fighting, and death. Looking back on it now I would have to say I kinda liked my Pop and miss him now.
Mom was as much as opposite of Pop as one could be. While Pop was a fun, outgoing type Mom was the shy wait-at-home-for-the-husband type. She was my anchor thought and without her I would never have gotten through some pretty tough times. She provided the moral support Pop and I both needed and I miss her as much as I do Pop right now.
When I got notification of my draft Pop came to me and asked if I wanted him to fix it for me. Being third in charge of the EastCoast Computer he could do it without much trouble too. But I said no, it was my public duty to serve. And anyway it might be fun. Mom and Pop were so proud of me. They called up all the relations and friends and told them that I had decided to serve my country.
I still remember that day.
(multiple times)
RAM (11/23/29)
POW!down.
My scanners read it as coming 15 degrees from my right. The enemy has engaged us, do not fire until you see the whites of their eyes. Or if they be RAMs the red of their scanner grills.
ATTACK! WE ARE UNDER ATTACK BY THE BLUES! DEFEND YOURSELF AND DO THE REDS PROUD.
The blues had sent an advance scout out and now we would make up for all the damage the blues had missiled on us. My Heat Receivers picked up what could only be a dogface behind the bushes. I let go with a burst from my LaserRifle and watched as both bush and soldier burned.
My scanners indicated trouble and I swiveled to the right just in time to see RA99943534 get blown apart by a body missile from a blue RAM. I turned my LaserRifle on the RAM and the metal body melted down to a slab. The glare from the laser attack was blinding and I scanned the dogfaces putting their I-R goggles on.
1430
Clown (11/23/29)
***************************(darkness)*****************light*************************
LIGHT! (Light ike laser/laser like bomb/bomb like explode/pain) hurt, pain, light means hurt, laser=pain, light means laser means hurt means pain.
The light wasso bright and painful.
I screamed once and hurled myself over the bushes toward the reds and the light/pain. My I-R goggles rested on top of my head and when I looked towards what had once been a blue RAM my eyes died.
I went blind and the darkness threatened to invade my mind as well as my eyes.
The memory of the light stayed with me and the remembrance of light being pain and pain hurting and hurting bringing nightmares and nightmares bringing the memory of the laser bomb and the laser bomb bringing light and, and, and, (forever)
I fumbled for the pack on my back and withdrew the little black box from it. I fumbled with the catch in the dark and withdrew my prize from within it.
1432
Dogface (11/23/29)
oh god oh god oh god oh god oh god oh god
Clown had gone crazy when that red RAM melted down our RAM, screaming and yelling. Even the enemy was taken back by it and both sides ceased fighting for a minute. And a minute was all Clown needed. He reached into his pack and took out a laser bomb. An enemy weapon, where did he pick it up? What type of deranged fool would pick up a weapon of the enemy's? And a laser bomb. that was one of the worst weapons either side had. I would rather face a dozen time bombs than one laser bomb.
The other side retreated a few steps back too. They knew that if Clown threw that thing it would kill indisciminately. Clown waved it around over his head and one of our dogfaces raised his GrenadeRifle to shoot him. He never got the chance. One of the reds used a body missile on him. I'm glad too, a grenade going off that close would set the laser bomb off too.
The RAM that had the LaserRifle finally fired, slicing Clown in half. But nt before he tossed the bomb in our midst.
Lasers erupted from the bomb, spraying all, slicing all. My arm, then my leg, then
1433
Computer Run (11/23/29)
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Subj. blue/red war
Days summary, as follows:
Blue team loses seven hundred yards and pulls camp back accordingly.
Red team gains seven hudnred yards and sets up outpost camp.
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Red team intercepts blue team's food shipment for coming week.
Blue team destroys weapon supply that was coming for red team.
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Blue team suffers casualties as follows:
Human soldiers: 154 dead, 43 wounded.
Adroids: 39 destroyed, 12 incapacitated.
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Red team suffers casualties as follows:
Human soldiers: 113 dead, 65 wounded.
Androids: 34 destroyed, 24 incapacitated.
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This report filed for the date of 11/24/29
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2400
