Taylor's group was setting up camp for the night in a small cave within walking distance to a river. The cave couldn't fit everyone leaving a small group sleeping outside the mouth of the cave. To ensure safety it was made up of all their fighters to give the vulnerable a secure place to sleep. Awake on guard duty is Demitri and Miguel.
"I have been meaning to ask. Why join the mafia instead of the military?" Miguel investigated.
"The pay of course," Demitri replied.
"Given your reaction yesterday it's about more than the money. " Miguel said while checking the perimeter.
Demitri grew up in the slums with a big family and being the eldest he had a lot of responsibility. With a sick mother, an absent father he was holding the family together. When it was becoming too difficult to sustain them an opportunity arose. A man approached him with a box and asked him to deliver it.
With substantial money offered for a simple delivery, Demitri took it in a heartbeat. After that, he did any jobs they requested. Once Ivan started to notice his work ethic he had him investigated. Seeing how dedicated Demitri was to his family they brought him into the fold.
"It was about my respect for Ivan as well. He helped my family greatly, and it's a debt I can never repay." Demitri said while clenching his fist.
"You repay the debt of a fallen comrade by surviving and going forward with your life. Live a life good enough for the both of them." Miguel replied.
Demitri thought about Ivan's son waiting for his return. With no one else to watch over him properly dying here wasn't an option. Losing a comrade is something Miguel understood and placed his hand on Demitri's shoulder.
"I'm sorry we couldn't give them a proper burial," Miguel stated.
"From the sounds of it, there wouldn't be much to bury anyway," Demitri replied.
The two continued to talk about their experiences during their service, and slowly Demitri started opening up. They talked about each other's family, and what they wanted to do first when returning home. It was three hours till sunrise and time for the shift change.
"See anything off?" Taylor asked as she was stretching.
"No sir it's pretty quiet," Miguel replied.
"I gotta find a tree real quick, and then I'll be ready," Brian stated.
"Just whip it out here we won't laugh."Miguel teased while handing him his gun.
"I just don't wanna embarrass you guys," Brian replied as he walked off.
Demitri started laughing as he walked off to find a spot to sleep.
'He's toughened up some since high school.'Taylor smirked seeing him unbothered by their taunts.
"Thought journalists were a bunch of pushovers, but he's really stepped up," Miguel told Taylor.
"Going through a crucible can do that. I doubt any of us will leave this place the same." Taylor replied.
Brian walked towards the trees normally till he was out of sight, and then his body slumped over in pain. Brian was coughing harshly into his hand and smeared it along the tree leaving a scarlet print. He slowly lifted his shirt and looked down with concern. A mixture of purple and red covered the left side of the chest, and the pain was only getting worse. Brian finished his business and walked back towards Taylor as if everything is okay. Taylor smiled watching him approach.
'I can't let her find out. If I'm gonna die I wanna see that smile as much as possible.'
"Took you long enough. Sure you were just using the bathroom?" Taylor teased.
While sitting on watch the two finally had the chance to catch up with each other. Brian found out she enlisted right after high school and did two tours overseas. The reason she returned was her father passed and left her the company. Once Bethany's next term was up she returned home taking her place at the company.
"I'm sorry about your father. I know you two were close." Brian told Bethany.
"It was rough, but we knew it was coming," Bethany replied with a sad look.
"We can talk about it if you want," Brian said while placing his hand on hers.
Bethany looked up at Brian seeing how concerned he was about her well-being. She recalled how nice he was in high school, and how she could always rely on him to be a friend. Bethany was slowly leaning as the two looked deeply into each other's eyes. As they were about to kiss a loud screech was heard in the air.
They both rapidly lifting their guns checking the thermal vision. They could see several figures swarming around in the air. Seeing it wasn't the invisible creatures they switched to night vision and saw two monsters flying above them. On their next clash in the sky, the two locked onto each other barreling towards the ground giving them a better view.
The two resembled human women but had long bat ears atop their heads. From their bicep down was black fur and bat wings. Their lower half resembled humans with the exception of fur trailing down from their thighs, and a thin black tail from their waist.
"A territorial dispute?" Brian asked while looking down his sights.
"More than likely. Still, we should be on guard." Taylor replied.
'Damn bats.' Brian looked up in irritation.
After the close call, they continued to observe the jungle diligently. Everything stayed quiet till morning, and once they boiled water for the day they continued through the jungle. They were only a mile from the grasslands and were stopping to gather food. Miguel was scaling up a tree to retrieve some bananas while Bethany examined some tracks.
"Are you sure?" Taylor asked.
"It's definitely a bear, but I've never seen one this size," Bethany replied.
"Typically they are killed before they can get that big. When people first settled into the colonies there were stories of massive bears who preyed on men without fear of repercussions. It was one reason predators were hunted so diligently." Wesley stated.
"They are still fresh so it should be close by," Bethany said while following the trail.