This was it. It was really it.
Yuri had been dreaming of this moment for so long that it seemed surreal, strangely fitting. He almost forgot to reload his rifle.
Another one of the camouflaged aliens shimmered around the bend of the hallway, trying to get the right angle. The hulk of shimmering translucence edged closer and was about to fire.
Yuri sighted the rifle and squeezed the trigger quickly, a warm satisfaction emerging from the recoil. The alien fell back as its camouflage failed, shimmering into view broken armor and a fountain of grey blood.
The radio crackled inside his helmet. Lieutenant Ander’s voice was raspy and hoarse. “We’re almost at the LZ! Two minutes.”
Yuri glanced at the nuke timer at the lower left hand corner of his visor. It showed three minutes and was ticking down fast.
He scanned the area, saw it was clear, and then backed up from the hallway. He spun on his heel and broke into a full sprint back towards the nuclear bomb.
It would be the longest three minutes of his life.
He thought about the drunken night that had brought him to the recruiting office. The night he had spent with Lieutenant Ander. The day he had graduated from Spec Ops. But most of all, he thought about how he was about to win one last time.
He reached the nest room and sealed the bulkheads behind him.
There it was, majestically half lit by the flickering light bar above. A smooth metal basketball, suspended by two hangers and a fistful of wires. The nuke that would save them all. The nuke that would end this war.
The nuke that would vaporize the entire planet.
Yuri eased himself down next to it, resting his tired body against the hard concrete of the room. He sighed as he took off his helmet and began to caress the casing with his fingertips.
In a cruel twist of fate, Yuri’s worst fear and greatest desire had come true. His eternal death wish, fueled by endless nights of drunken crying and cold bed sheets had finally brought him here to this mission, to this place.
The doors to the room began to dent inward as sounds of forced entry echoed. The timer in his visor read thirty seconds left. His radio crackled with Lieutenant Ander’s voice.
“We’re onboard.” The pops of gunfire were muffled as Yuri heard the drop ship doors close. There was a moment of silence before the lieutenant’s voice choked up. “It’s been an honor.”
Yuri drew his pistol, pointing it toward the door. “Helluva ride, sir.” He had seconds left on the timer.
Static filled the silence of the channel. It smoothed out as the drop ship cleared the atmosphere and escaped into space. The lieutenant spoke again, this time with more volume. “You never…” He could hear the heavy breathing. “…you never answered my question.”
Yuri steadied his hand, the pistol in his palm visibly shaking. “I was never afraid to die for a good purpose.” He fought back the tears. “I was afraid to live without one. Without you.”
“I love you.”
He clicked off the channel as the bulkhead doors fell, a strong slam against the floor that shook his body. Three aliens appeared before him as the dust settled.
Yuri smiled bitterly as a nuclear fury embraced him.
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