Sashataakheru (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
wolfanfics) wrote2010-03-21 12:59 am
wolfanfics) wrote2010-03-21 12:59 am
Entry tags:
The Glass House: Chapter Thirty
Title: The Glass House
Author: Sashataakheru
Beta: The wonderfulrana_narsilion <3
Fandom: The Chaser/AusComedy RPS
Starring: Adam Hills, Sepulchre (OC), Wil Anderson, Hamish Blake, Craig Reucassel, Tim Minchin, Julian Morrow, Chas Licciardello, Charles Firth, Chris Taylor, Andrew Hansen, Caleb (OC), Dr Rachel Hardy (OC), Antoinette Laurent (OC), Dr Samantha Reddings (OC), Dominic Knight, Shane Cubis, Gregor Stronach, Tim Brunero, Andy Lee
Pairings: Andrew/Chris; Adam/Hamish; Jules/Chas; Rachel/Antoinette(/Samantha); Adam/Seb; Adam/Wil; Craig/Caleb; Adam/Wil/Tim; Andrew/Craig, Wil/Chas; implied Tim/Craig, Hamish/Andy (after a fashion. XD)
Word Count: 4,158
Chapter: 30/31 [Previous]
Warnings: language, violence, broken!Andr00
Rating: FRAO
Disclaimer: I don’t know them, not associated with them, just a slashy fangirl admirer with a very active imagination.
Author’s Notes: FYI, fullwing = winged human capable of flight. Halfwing = fullwing/human halfbreed, usually unable to fly, sometimes have vestigial wings, but can be removed to pass as human and not as winged.
Summary: Former enemies become friends as the rebellion grows beyond its original goal in the face of invasion. Both the rebels and the State Army must be quick to react and act together, but will it be enough?
Chapter Thirty
By the time dawn came, the city was in utter chaos. Those not fighting had mostly fled, and those still fighting were engaged in skirmishes amongst themselves. Those forming unofficial alliances moved north and prepared for the Chinese, hoping to get a defensive barrier in place before the task was insurmountable. The rest fought amongst themselves, trying to gain the upper hand. Adam and his troops headed south, fighting their way to Canberra. Resistance built as they got further southward, with the remaining Army forces doing their best to defend the nation's capital. They finally broke into the capital just after mid-morning, only to find Parliament House in ruins. Adam drew them up to a stop and got out of the truck to investigate.
"Basic defences, they might be going for reinforcements. The rest of you, stay armed. Three of you, follow me," Adam said as he walked towards the ruins. He climbed over the wreckage as he surveyed the damage. "Shit. Do you think Andrew did this?"
Hamish joined him. "Looks like it, Adam. Who else would do this?"
"This is not good. This really isn't good. I wonder if there was anyone still in here when it was destroyed? I wonder if anyone's still alive?" Adam said.
"Do we even have time to search for them?" Hamish said.
"We need to know. Parliament was scheduled to sit yesterday. Maybe they didn't have time to evacuate before Andrew descended on them. If they're all dead, this is all over now. I had no intention of killing them, you know that. I was going to arrest them and have them tried properly, you know, bring them to justice. This… this is senseless carnage," Adam said.
The damage was substantial. The whole building had been reduced to rubble. Some of the rebels began searching, if for no other reason than there seemed to be little else to do. Adam felt partly responsible. He hadn't meant for it to end like this. But Andrew had grown beyond his control and it had resulted in this. One of the rebels approached.
"Adam, I think there were people in here. Should we try and recover the bodies and see if anyone's still alive?"
"It will have to be done eventually, I'm sure, but right now we have more pressing matters. See if there are any Army personnel around. I think we can call the old regime dead and gone, if you'll excuse the expression. Call for the most senior ranking officer, or at least the highest ranking person who's now in charge. We need to get this over with and move against the Chinese," Adam said.
"Right on it, Adam."
Three of them set off for the surrounding area, looking for Army soldiers. Adam remained where he was and took in the damage. This was not how he wanted his rebellion to end. Allegiance with what was left of the State's Armed Forces was now a mere formality. They would need to be united if they were going to push back the invasion and save the country.
"This is really sad. Although it means the old regime is out of the way once and for all. We can start afresh when we've beaten back the Chinese," Adam said.
"We'll have to rebuild a lot, not just Parliament. It'll take years to recover from this," Hamish said.
"Yeah, it'll take a while, but maybe we can bring this country back to where it should be and bring our democracy back instead of being ruled over by a tyrant. Come on, let's see if there's anything that can be salvaged, and if anyone's managed to survive," Adam said with a sigh.
Metre by metre, Adam and his men began searching the rubble for signs of life. In the end, they found more corpses than survivors. Only five of the people inside managed to survive. Setting up a makeshift hospital, the survivors were treated as best the rebels could manage while they waited for Tim and Charles, and the Army to come.
The northern campaign had been bloody. Queensland had been used by the Chinese as their entry point, and the Indonesians had followed. Any groups that were in the way were harassed from the air by invading aircraft as they headed south. They'd lost a lot of men from that, and there was no time to retrieve the bodies in the desperate hunt for shelter. The Army forces had been quick to surrender to the rebels, realising they were far beyond a simple rebellion and on the verge of invasion. Slowly, the groups of rebels and survivors made their way south, hoping to help with the resistance.
Once everyone had been gathered together again, they set up camp, not wanting to move yet until they'd had a chance to work out what to do next. They split off into small groups, setting up small camp fires as night fell. Wil, Chas, Julian and Craig sat around their own fire, watching the rabbits cooking. Craig had insisted they catch fresh meat. He was sick of dry rations. Chassy was curled up at Julian's feet, as usual, watching the dancing flames as he nursed his injured arm. He'd taken a hit to the shoulder from one of the Chinese planes and was lucky to have walked away with that while others lay dead around him. Wil appeared affected by a melancholy of his own. Julian wondered who he missed so badly.
"So, what's the plan? Do we stay here? Do we move on? Should we try and find an Army base that hasn't been destroyed and try and contact the others? Or just head south anyway? Do you think it's all over up here?" Julian said.
"Dunno, mate. I'd have to talk to Adam, see what's happened and if he needs us to move. I suggest a small party heads off to find a way to contact them, and the rest stay here. No point in moving when we don't have to. There's plenty of fresh water, and the forest appears to contain small moving animals we can kill if necessary, so it's not like it'll be too tough staying here. Best give the guys a rest before we have to engage in really heavy fighting. Think that rabbit's ready yet?" Wil said.
"Might be. Chassy, check the rabbit," Julian said.
"Arm, Julian. I'm still injured, you know. Check it yourself," Chassy said.
"Oh yeah, I forgot," Julian said, checking the rabbit himself.
"Yeah, you're really showing me how much you care," Chassy said and curled up again.
Deciding the meat was done, Julian pulled them from the fire and onto what would have to do as a cutting board to cut up the meat between them. It was just plain meat as they lacked the fresh vegetables and other trimmings to make a decent meal of it. It would have to do until they could find other fresh food. Craig was glad to have proper food for once, in spite of the lack of vegetables. Chassy glared at Julian as he got his. Wil sat back and stared at the ground as he picked at his serving.
"Wil, what the fuck's wrong with you?" Chassy said, unable to stand his sulking any longer. Getting up stiffly, Chas made his way over to him and sat down at his feet, guilt tripping him into talking with his puppy dog eyes, his meal left behind.
"It's… it's difficult to tell. I didn't - I mean, what I meant was-"
Wil stopped, unable to work out how to say what was wrong.
"Would it help if everyone else buggered off?" Chassy suggested. "Come on, we'll get away from here. Then you can tell me what's wrong," he said.
Wil nodded reluctantly as Chassy got to his feet. Wil followed as Chassy took his hand, leading him back behind the old Army base and away from prying ears. Setting the lamp down on an old tree stump, Chas sat him down against the wall.
"Now, what the fuck's wrong with you? Is it something to do with Adam?" Chas guessed.
"Maybe. It's hard to articulate," Wil said.
"How long have you wanted him?" Chas said.
"Too long. But he'll never be mine, not now. Hamish is too precious to him for Adam to give him up for me," Wil said with a sigh.
"Did you ever think of telling him how you feel?" Chas said.
"I never got the chance. Now it's too late. I'll just have to live with being alone now," Wil said.
"Oh stop being so melodramatic. You'll be alright. Surely you and Tim-"
"He doesn't want me, not that way. I mean, we mess around and all that, but that's all it is," Wil said.
"Shit. I didn't realise-"
"It's alright. It's just - I knew Adam before Hamish did, and I feel like he's taking him away from me. What am I supposed to do?" Wil said.
"Let Adam be with who he wants to be with?" Chas said.
"Even if letting him go will break my heart?" Wil said.
"Even so. Look, you're clearly not going to separate them, so why lend yourself the pain? Let go and find someone else," Chas said.
"I just wish I knew he was alright, you know? I hate not being able to find out how he is. Maybe they've all been rounded up and the State's taken control again. Maybe the Chinese have bombed the shit out of the city and they're lying dead in the rubble of some building. The worry is killing me," Wil said.
"Maybe we should send a small group out to try and contact them again, just to make sure. I mean, we can't stay up here forever. I'm sure we'll be needed eventually," Chas said.
"Yeah, but we'll sort that out in the morning. Best - best get some sleep for now," Wil said.
"Try not to think about it, alright? Want me to cuddle with you?" Chas said.
"Oh, you don't have to. Besides, you've got Jules-"
"He can survive one night without me. Come on, you need puppy snuggles," Chassy said, nudging Wil's hands with his nose in a bid to look adorable.
Wil was unable to not laugh at him as Chas insisted on snuggles. Wil was careful not to hurt him, but Wil suspected Chas didn't mind as much as he was letting on. He had to laugh when Chas started licking his face playfully, and Wil wanted to both hug him tight and push him away. Chas was determined to have his way and pinned Wil down, nuzzling his neck softly.
"Come on, bed time. You get Chassy snuggles tonight," Chas said, grabbing Wil's collar in his mouth as he tried to pull him up.
"You're gonna wreck your shoulder if you keep that up. Come on, let go and look after yourself. Jules would hate it if you hurt yourself further," Wil said.
Chas let go, annoyed at Wil's protectiveness. "Alright, alright, I'll stop. But get up anyway. Bed time for Chassy," he said.
Satisfied he'd got his way, Chas stepped back and let Wil pull them both to their feet. They made their way back to the fire where Wil sat down again and Chas curled up at his feet.
By the time the Army had arrived to make a deal at last, it was nearly sunset. A few of the bodies had already been recovered and laid out in a makeshift morgue for identification and burial. The Chief of the Defence Forces had come to meet them, being the most senior official of the State regime left. Adam met him in front of what was the main entrance of Parliament House. Both looked over the rubble again as the soldiers the Chief brought with him got to work with the rebels, clearing the rubble and recovering bodies.
"We meet in the most sombre of occasions," the Chief said.
"Indeed. This wasn't our doing. I'm not sure what did this. It was not my plan to kill so many," Adam said.
"Is it over then?" the Chief said.
"How pressing is China? Do we need to concentrate all our efforts on pushing them out of the country? How far have they gone down the coast?" Adam said.
"Last I heard they were on the Queensland-New South Wales border, and they're about to descend on Perth. They've wiped out the centre and they're moving down to Adelaide. If they keep this pace, they'll have overrun the country in a couple of days. We're fighting them as best we can, but some of our forces are still fighting your rebels instead of moving against the invaders," the Chief said.
"I'm prepared to call a truce and ally against them, if that's what's needed. The Chinese have gotten us some of their weapons, some surface-to-air missiles and other things. But we don't have the arsenal the Army has. If we both agree that the country needs to be reborn out of tyranny, then we can ally and sort out the country once the invaders have gone," Adam said.
"It may have to do for the moment. There were surprisingly few who actually believed you would start a war. Most believed it was all talk and you had nothing. You sure proved us wrong," the Chief said.
"It was the only course of action we knew would work, much as we hated it. It was our very last resort. We figured if we failed now, we'd be wiped out for good. We didn't think we had another choice left," Adam said.
"You were probably right. There were secret plans for what was crudely termed an extermination programme. Some of the most senior Government members truly wanted to wipe you out for good. Thankfully, you started your rebellion so we didn't have to put those plans into place. Let me tell you, they were not pleasant. Be thankful you were spared that," the Chief said.
"I am thankful for that. Are you the highest ranking Government person left?" Adam said.
"I'm the only one in charge of the Defence Forces now, at the very least. I'm not sure who else is left. I'm willing to call off fighting with the rebels if it means we can ally and fight together against the invasion forces," the Chief said.
"We've found five survivors so far, but they're badly injured. We're not sure who they are yet," Adam said.
"I think it's best we leave our forces here to help clear this mess and call our sides together. We need to work on a strategic plan that'll work with the addition of your fighters. You'll have to educate me on what you winged humans can do. It's been so long since we had them in the Armed Forces that we've no idea how best to deploy them in combat," the Chief said.
"I'd be happy to help. Is there any way we can tell everyone at once? The sooner we can organise this, the sooner we can fight against them and the sooner we can get them out of our country," Adam said.
"We can use what's left of the national media networks to get the message across, and of course, I'll have the message passed through to all the troops, as I'm sure you will. Come on, let's go see what's left to use," the Chief said.
Adam and the Chief of the Army set about broadcasting news of the end of the civil war and the alliance between the two groups in order to fight off the invaders. Reservist soldiers were sent to tend to those that had fled the city, while the main battle contingent prepared to confront the Chinese and the Indonesian forces.
Adam, Hamish, and now Tim and Charles, gathered together with the Chief and his most senior officers to plan their attack. It was vital they got it right, or they would be overrun before they could fight back. Intelligence and surveillance information was hard to ascertain. The speed the Chinese were travelling down the coast was astonishing. Clearly, they were heading straight for Canberra.
"We shouldn't concentrate all our efforts here. We'll leave ourselves exposed. We need good troop numbers around the rest of the country, and a significant number here to fend them off. Have we found out the exact number of foreign troops yet?" Adam said.
"Not yet. We know there are troop carriers offshore up near Cairns and Darwin, but they haven't come ashore, so we're not sure what to make of it. They have got a significant number of ground troops supporting the air strikes, but that's it. They're not destroying everything. They're heading straight here and destroying anything that gets in the way. There are also reports that they've been hitting Army bases with near-precision. How much recon did you share with them?" the Chief said.
"Not much, and certainly not detailed maps. We were careful with what we shared when we were planning our attacks. That doesn't mean they didn't look at our maps without us knowing though. Given that they betrayed us, which we should've seen coming, I wouldn't have been surprised if they'd had plans all along to invade and used us as an excuse to get themselves invited in. But when your people are on the verge of being wiped out by an oppressive regime, you're willing to try anything to survive and instigate change," Adam said.
"Let's just concentrate on driving them out. I for one don't blame you for your actions. If you hadn't done anything, we'd still be stagnating," the Chief said.
"True, true. Stagnation isn't good for a country. It breeds corruption," Adam said.
"And there was plenty of it hanging around, which I'm sure you know all about," the Chief said.
"We knew about it, alright. Some of it we exploited for our own gain and survival," Adam said.
"I'm sure you did. Most people did. If they weren't bribing the cops, it was others. This whole country stunk of corruption. But thanks to you, we've got a chance to start over," the Chief said. "So, where are your men stationed at the moment? How best can we utilise them, do you think?"
"In this state alone, I know there's a large group on the Queensland-News South Wales border, plus, all the troops here. There was a group in the west as well, but I haven't heard from them yet to know how they're going. Hopefully, they're alright. In other states, we started with groups of around four to five thousand, although it was larger in Melbourne than in the other states. There was also a larger group in the Northern Territory as well, mainly because a lot of fullwings sought refuge up there away from the city and the corruption. I lived up there for a while myself when I was organising them all. No one bothered us there. The soldiers never crossed the border," Adam said.
"Do you think we have enough manpower to push them out if we combine our forces completely?" the Chief said.
"Maybe. We might just have enough. But I think our first priority should be working out where they are and where we are and how best to move against them first," Adam said.
"I've got my men onto it already, gathering intelligence from the field. Hopefully, together we can take back our country and start over again," the Chief said.
"They're here! Get the missiles ready! They'll be dropping bombs any second now! Protect everyone who can't fight back and get them out of here!"
The Major serving with Chris protecting the makeshift hospital had heard the planes first. He had run to the others, making sure they knew danger was coming. Everyone began to panic. Patients were evacuated first, loaded onto trucks as fast as possible before driving off to safety, leaving the soldiers there to defend the place. When they ran out of trucks and other vehicles, as the sickest patients went first, the rest were left to be defended by the soldiers. There was no other option.
It was then that time stopped for Chris. He heard Andrew calling to him as he ran away from the hospital. He'd clearly been left behind as he wasn't physically injured. Chris turned to see him and a few others, running as fast as they could. Chris and the others encouraged them to run faster as the planes closed in.
Only ten metres away, the hospital was destroyed, bombed beyond recognition. The blast slammed into Andrew and the others running for safety.
Andrew stumbled and collapsed into Chris' arms as Chris ran out to him. Kneeling on the ground, Chris grabbed him tightly. Andrew was crying and groaning. Chris looked down to see blood covering Andrew's back. Shrapnel.
"Oh God," Chris whispered. "A-Andrew? You alright?"
Andrew couldn't answer; he was in too much pain to answer.
With missile fire all around them, Chris dragged Andrew towards the jeeps, wanting to get him sheltered as they fought off the planes.
"Major! We need to get out of here! Now!" Chris yelled as it became apparent the planes were going to outgun them.
The Major hesitated, looking to the Lt Col for direction.
"What are you waiting for? Get those injured into the trucks and return fire as we go! We need to retreat! Now!" the Lt Col said as he sent another missile towards the planes.
That spurred everyone into action. The injured were gathered up, the dead left where they lay, and the missiles were shot into the planes as the trucks sped off into the distance, hoping to escape them.
"Adam. They've just hit Sydney. They're pelting it with bombs. Everyone's terrified and trying to fight back, but most are just running scared." Hamish ran in bearing the bad news.
"Shit. They're moving fast. We need to move now, sir, or they're going to overrun us before we can fight back," Adam said.
"I agree. Get word to your men. We're moving in now. Close in around them. Tell them to head south and try and keep them at bay from there. I've already ordered our planes into combat. Hopefully we can outnumber them. The Navy's off attempting to destroy their troop carriers and cut off their reinforcements. Do you think the plans are enough?" the Chief said.
"It's all we've got. We can only hope it works," Adam said.
"Adam, Chris just called in, they've lost one of the hospitals, they've got several badly injured with them. They're attempting to help them as they escape," Hamish said as he got off the radio. He'd been communicating with all the groups as best he could to help feed the planning.
"Shit. This could only get worse," Adam said.
"One of the injured is Andrew. Got hit with shrapnel, Chris said he's bleeding badly. They're trying to find the nearest hospital that's still intact to see if they can't save them," Hamish said.
Adam swallowed. That was worse. "This is all my fault. I should never have let him fight. Seb warned it would get him killed," he said.
"He-he's not dead, not yet, but Chris… Chris said it's not looking good," Hamish said.
"Well, there's nothing we can do for them, not from here. Look, tell them to do what they can. We're beginning our assault on the Chinese, the joint venture between the State and the rebels. Get onto all the groups and tell them to close in. Those in the north at the Queensland border need to come south to reinforce the troops down here. That's where the Chinese are, so that's where we'll pin them down. And then we wait for them to give in," Adam said.
"Right. I'm onto it, Adam," Hamish said.
"Good boy," Adam said with a smile. "Now all we need to do is hope this plan works."
Wil landed back at the camp after he'd gone off searching for a working radio at one of the old Army bases. "We're moving out!"
"We're moving out? What's the plan?" Julian said as Wil and his small party returned.
"We're moving south, blocking the Chinese. Get camp packed up. We're needed now!" Wil said.
The urgency swamped the camp as everyone hurriedly packed up and got ready to march. Wil was amazed at their eagerness. He'd never seen them get ready so quickly. In less than an hour, they were on the move, heading south back towards Sydney as fast as they could.
"The end is nearing, can't you taste it in the air, Jules?" Chassy said as he marched enthusiastically beside Julian.
"Yeah, it's feeling good. Hopefully, this will be it," Julian said.
Author: Sashataakheru
Beta: The wonderful
rana_narsilion <3Fandom: The Chaser/AusComedy RPS
Starring: Adam Hills, Sepulchre (OC), Wil Anderson, Hamish Blake, Craig Reucassel, Tim Minchin, Julian Morrow, Chas Licciardello, Charles Firth, Chris Taylor, Andrew Hansen, Caleb (OC), Dr Rachel Hardy (OC), Antoinette Laurent (OC), Dr Samantha Reddings (OC), Dominic Knight, Shane Cubis, Gregor Stronach, Tim Brunero, Andy Lee
Pairings: Andrew/Chris; Adam/Hamish; Jules/Chas; Rachel/Antoinette(/Samantha); Adam/Seb; Adam/Wil; Craig/Caleb; Adam/Wil/Tim; Andrew/Craig, Wil/Chas; implied Tim/Craig, Hamish/Andy (after a fashion. XD)
Word Count: 4,158
Chapter: 30/31 [Previous]
Warnings: language, violence, broken!Andr00
Rating: FRAO
Disclaimer: I don’t know them, not associated with them, just a slashy fangirl admirer with a very active imagination.
Author’s Notes: FYI, fullwing = winged human capable of flight. Halfwing = fullwing/human halfbreed, usually unable to fly, sometimes have vestigial wings, but can be removed to pass as human and not as winged.
Summary: Former enemies become friends as the rebellion grows beyond its original goal in the face of invasion. Both the rebels and the State Army must be quick to react and act together, but will it be enough?
Chapter Thirty
By the time dawn came, the city was in utter chaos. Those not fighting had mostly fled, and those still fighting were engaged in skirmishes amongst themselves. Those forming unofficial alliances moved north and prepared for the Chinese, hoping to get a defensive barrier in place before the task was insurmountable. The rest fought amongst themselves, trying to gain the upper hand. Adam and his troops headed south, fighting their way to Canberra. Resistance built as they got further southward, with the remaining Army forces doing their best to defend the nation's capital. They finally broke into the capital just after mid-morning, only to find Parliament House in ruins. Adam drew them up to a stop and got out of the truck to investigate.
"Basic defences, they might be going for reinforcements. The rest of you, stay armed. Three of you, follow me," Adam said as he walked towards the ruins. He climbed over the wreckage as he surveyed the damage. "Shit. Do you think Andrew did this?"
Hamish joined him. "Looks like it, Adam. Who else would do this?"
"This is not good. This really isn't good. I wonder if there was anyone still in here when it was destroyed? I wonder if anyone's still alive?" Adam said.
"Do we even have time to search for them?" Hamish said.
"We need to know. Parliament was scheduled to sit yesterday. Maybe they didn't have time to evacuate before Andrew descended on them. If they're all dead, this is all over now. I had no intention of killing them, you know that. I was going to arrest them and have them tried properly, you know, bring them to justice. This… this is senseless carnage," Adam said.
The damage was substantial. The whole building had been reduced to rubble. Some of the rebels began searching, if for no other reason than there seemed to be little else to do. Adam felt partly responsible. He hadn't meant for it to end like this. But Andrew had grown beyond his control and it had resulted in this. One of the rebels approached.
"Adam, I think there were people in here. Should we try and recover the bodies and see if anyone's still alive?"
"It will have to be done eventually, I'm sure, but right now we have more pressing matters. See if there are any Army personnel around. I think we can call the old regime dead and gone, if you'll excuse the expression. Call for the most senior ranking officer, or at least the highest ranking person who's now in charge. We need to get this over with and move against the Chinese," Adam said.
"Right on it, Adam."
Three of them set off for the surrounding area, looking for Army soldiers. Adam remained where he was and took in the damage. This was not how he wanted his rebellion to end. Allegiance with what was left of the State's Armed Forces was now a mere formality. They would need to be united if they were going to push back the invasion and save the country.
"This is really sad. Although it means the old regime is out of the way once and for all. We can start afresh when we've beaten back the Chinese," Adam said.
"We'll have to rebuild a lot, not just Parliament. It'll take years to recover from this," Hamish said.
"Yeah, it'll take a while, but maybe we can bring this country back to where it should be and bring our democracy back instead of being ruled over by a tyrant. Come on, let's see if there's anything that can be salvaged, and if anyone's managed to survive," Adam said with a sigh.
Metre by metre, Adam and his men began searching the rubble for signs of life. In the end, they found more corpses than survivors. Only five of the people inside managed to survive. Setting up a makeshift hospital, the survivors were treated as best the rebels could manage while they waited for Tim and Charles, and the Army to come.
The northern campaign had been bloody. Queensland had been used by the Chinese as their entry point, and the Indonesians had followed. Any groups that were in the way were harassed from the air by invading aircraft as they headed south. They'd lost a lot of men from that, and there was no time to retrieve the bodies in the desperate hunt for shelter. The Army forces had been quick to surrender to the rebels, realising they were far beyond a simple rebellion and on the verge of invasion. Slowly, the groups of rebels and survivors made their way south, hoping to help with the resistance.
Once everyone had been gathered together again, they set up camp, not wanting to move yet until they'd had a chance to work out what to do next. They split off into small groups, setting up small camp fires as night fell. Wil, Chas, Julian and Craig sat around their own fire, watching the rabbits cooking. Craig had insisted they catch fresh meat. He was sick of dry rations. Chassy was curled up at Julian's feet, as usual, watching the dancing flames as he nursed his injured arm. He'd taken a hit to the shoulder from one of the Chinese planes and was lucky to have walked away with that while others lay dead around him. Wil appeared affected by a melancholy of his own. Julian wondered who he missed so badly.
"So, what's the plan? Do we stay here? Do we move on? Should we try and find an Army base that hasn't been destroyed and try and contact the others? Or just head south anyway? Do you think it's all over up here?" Julian said.
"Dunno, mate. I'd have to talk to Adam, see what's happened and if he needs us to move. I suggest a small party heads off to find a way to contact them, and the rest stay here. No point in moving when we don't have to. There's plenty of fresh water, and the forest appears to contain small moving animals we can kill if necessary, so it's not like it'll be too tough staying here. Best give the guys a rest before we have to engage in really heavy fighting. Think that rabbit's ready yet?" Wil said.
"Might be. Chassy, check the rabbit," Julian said.
"Arm, Julian. I'm still injured, you know. Check it yourself," Chassy said.
"Oh yeah, I forgot," Julian said, checking the rabbit himself.
"Yeah, you're really showing me how much you care," Chassy said and curled up again.
Deciding the meat was done, Julian pulled them from the fire and onto what would have to do as a cutting board to cut up the meat between them. It was just plain meat as they lacked the fresh vegetables and other trimmings to make a decent meal of it. It would have to do until they could find other fresh food. Craig was glad to have proper food for once, in spite of the lack of vegetables. Chassy glared at Julian as he got his. Wil sat back and stared at the ground as he picked at his serving.
"Wil, what the fuck's wrong with you?" Chassy said, unable to stand his sulking any longer. Getting up stiffly, Chas made his way over to him and sat down at his feet, guilt tripping him into talking with his puppy dog eyes, his meal left behind.
"It's… it's difficult to tell. I didn't - I mean, what I meant was-"
Wil stopped, unable to work out how to say what was wrong.
"Would it help if everyone else buggered off?" Chassy suggested. "Come on, we'll get away from here. Then you can tell me what's wrong," he said.
Wil nodded reluctantly as Chassy got to his feet. Wil followed as Chassy took his hand, leading him back behind the old Army base and away from prying ears. Setting the lamp down on an old tree stump, Chas sat him down against the wall.
"Now, what the fuck's wrong with you? Is it something to do with Adam?" Chas guessed.
"Maybe. It's hard to articulate," Wil said.
"How long have you wanted him?" Chas said.
"Too long. But he'll never be mine, not now. Hamish is too precious to him for Adam to give him up for me," Wil said with a sigh.
"Did you ever think of telling him how you feel?" Chas said.
"I never got the chance. Now it's too late. I'll just have to live with being alone now," Wil said.
"Oh stop being so melodramatic. You'll be alright. Surely you and Tim-"
"He doesn't want me, not that way. I mean, we mess around and all that, but that's all it is," Wil said.
"Shit. I didn't realise-"
"It's alright. It's just - I knew Adam before Hamish did, and I feel like he's taking him away from me. What am I supposed to do?" Wil said.
"Let Adam be with who he wants to be with?" Chas said.
"Even if letting him go will break my heart?" Wil said.
"Even so. Look, you're clearly not going to separate them, so why lend yourself the pain? Let go and find someone else," Chas said.
"I just wish I knew he was alright, you know? I hate not being able to find out how he is. Maybe they've all been rounded up and the State's taken control again. Maybe the Chinese have bombed the shit out of the city and they're lying dead in the rubble of some building. The worry is killing me," Wil said.
"Maybe we should send a small group out to try and contact them again, just to make sure. I mean, we can't stay up here forever. I'm sure we'll be needed eventually," Chas said.
"Yeah, but we'll sort that out in the morning. Best - best get some sleep for now," Wil said.
"Try not to think about it, alright? Want me to cuddle with you?" Chas said.
"Oh, you don't have to. Besides, you've got Jules-"
"He can survive one night without me. Come on, you need puppy snuggles," Chassy said, nudging Wil's hands with his nose in a bid to look adorable.
Wil was unable to not laugh at him as Chas insisted on snuggles. Wil was careful not to hurt him, but Wil suspected Chas didn't mind as much as he was letting on. He had to laugh when Chas started licking his face playfully, and Wil wanted to both hug him tight and push him away. Chas was determined to have his way and pinned Wil down, nuzzling his neck softly.
"Come on, bed time. You get Chassy snuggles tonight," Chas said, grabbing Wil's collar in his mouth as he tried to pull him up.
"You're gonna wreck your shoulder if you keep that up. Come on, let go and look after yourself. Jules would hate it if you hurt yourself further," Wil said.
Chas let go, annoyed at Wil's protectiveness. "Alright, alright, I'll stop. But get up anyway. Bed time for Chassy," he said.
Satisfied he'd got his way, Chas stepped back and let Wil pull them both to their feet. They made their way back to the fire where Wil sat down again and Chas curled up at his feet.
By the time the Army had arrived to make a deal at last, it was nearly sunset. A few of the bodies had already been recovered and laid out in a makeshift morgue for identification and burial. The Chief of the Defence Forces had come to meet them, being the most senior official of the State regime left. Adam met him in front of what was the main entrance of Parliament House. Both looked over the rubble again as the soldiers the Chief brought with him got to work with the rebels, clearing the rubble and recovering bodies.
"We meet in the most sombre of occasions," the Chief said.
"Indeed. This wasn't our doing. I'm not sure what did this. It was not my plan to kill so many," Adam said.
"Is it over then?" the Chief said.
"How pressing is China? Do we need to concentrate all our efforts on pushing them out of the country? How far have they gone down the coast?" Adam said.
"Last I heard they were on the Queensland-New South Wales border, and they're about to descend on Perth. They've wiped out the centre and they're moving down to Adelaide. If they keep this pace, they'll have overrun the country in a couple of days. We're fighting them as best we can, but some of our forces are still fighting your rebels instead of moving against the invaders," the Chief said.
"I'm prepared to call a truce and ally against them, if that's what's needed. The Chinese have gotten us some of their weapons, some surface-to-air missiles and other things. But we don't have the arsenal the Army has. If we both agree that the country needs to be reborn out of tyranny, then we can ally and sort out the country once the invaders have gone," Adam said.
"It may have to do for the moment. There were surprisingly few who actually believed you would start a war. Most believed it was all talk and you had nothing. You sure proved us wrong," the Chief said.
"It was the only course of action we knew would work, much as we hated it. It was our very last resort. We figured if we failed now, we'd be wiped out for good. We didn't think we had another choice left," Adam said.
"You were probably right. There were secret plans for what was crudely termed an extermination programme. Some of the most senior Government members truly wanted to wipe you out for good. Thankfully, you started your rebellion so we didn't have to put those plans into place. Let me tell you, they were not pleasant. Be thankful you were spared that," the Chief said.
"I am thankful for that. Are you the highest ranking Government person left?" Adam said.
"I'm the only one in charge of the Defence Forces now, at the very least. I'm not sure who else is left. I'm willing to call off fighting with the rebels if it means we can ally and fight together against the invasion forces," the Chief said.
"We've found five survivors so far, but they're badly injured. We're not sure who they are yet," Adam said.
"I think it's best we leave our forces here to help clear this mess and call our sides together. We need to work on a strategic plan that'll work with the addition of your fighters. You'll have to educate me on what you winged humans can do. It's been so long since we had them in the Armed Forces that we've no idea how best to deploy them in combat," the Chief said.
"I'd be happy to help. Is there any way we can tell everyone at once? The sooner we can organise this, the sooner we can fight against them and the sooner we can get them out of our country," Adam said.
"We can use what's left of the national media networks to get the message across, and of course, I'll have the message passed through to all the troops, as I'm sure you will. Come on, let's go see what's left to use," the Chief said.
Adam and the Chief of the Army set about broadcasting news of the end of the civil war and the alliance between the two groups in order to fight off the invaders. Reservist soldiers were sent to tend to those that had fled the city, while the main battle contingent prepared to confront the Chinese and the Indonesian forces.
Adam, Hamish, and now Tim and Charles, gathered together with the Chief and his most senior officers to plan their attack. It was vital they got it right, or they would be overrun before they could fight back. Intelligence and surveillance information was hard to ascertain. The speed the Chinese were travelling down the coast was astonishing. Clearly, they were heading straight for Canberra.
"We shouldn't concentrate all our efforts here. We'll leave ourselves exposed. We need good troop numbers around the rest of the country, and a significant number here to fend them off. Have we found out the exact number of foreign troops yet?" Adam said.
"Not yet. We know there are troop carriers offshore up near Cairns and Darwin, but they haven't come ashore, so we're not sure what to make of it. They have got a significant number of ground troops supporting the air strikes, but that's it. They're not destroying everything. They're heading straight here and destroying anything that gets in the way. There are also reports that they've been hitting Army bases with near-precision. How much recon did you share with them?" the Chief said.
"Not much, and certainly not detailed maps. We were careful with what we shared when we were planning our attacks. That doesn't mean they didn't look at our maps without us knowing though. Given that they betrayed us, which we should've seen coming, I wouldn't have been surprised if they'd had plans all along to invade and used us as an excuse to get themselves invited in. But when your people are on the verge of being wiped out by an oppressive regime, you're willing to try anything to survive and instigate change," Adam said.
"Let's just concentrate on driving them out. I for one don't blame you for your actions. If you hadn't done anything, we'd still be stagnating," the Chief said.
"True, true. Stagnation isn't good for a country. It breeds corruption," Adam said.
"And there was plenty of it hanging around, which I'm sure you know all about," the Chief said.
"We knew about it, alright. Some of it we exploited for our own gain and survival," Adam said.
"I'm sure you did. Most people did. If they weren't bribing the cops, it was others. This whole country stunk of corruption. But thanks to you, we've got a chance to start over," the Chief said. "So, where are your men stationed at the moment? How best can we utilise them, do you think?"
"In this state alone, I know there's a large group on the Queensland-News South Wales border, plus, all the troops here. There was a group in the west as well, but I haven't heard from them yet to know how they're going. Hopefully, they're alright. In other states, we started with groups of around four to five thousand, although it was larger in Melbourne than in the other states. There was also a larger group in the Northern Territory as well, mainly because a lot of fullwings sought refuge up there away from the city and the corruption. I lived up there for a while myself when I was organising them all. No one bothered us there. The soldiers never crossed the border," Adam said.
"Do you think we have enough manpower to push them out if we combine our forces completely?" the Chief said.
"Maybe. We might just have enough. But I think our first priority should be working out where they are and where we are and how best to move against them first," Adam said.
"I've got my men onto it already, gathering intelligence from the field. Hopefully, together we can take back our country and start over again," the Chief said.
"They're here! Get the missiles ready! They'll be dropping bombs any second now! Protect everyone who can't fight back and get them out of here!"
The Major serving with Chris protecting the makeshift hospital had heard the planes first. He had run to the others, making sure they knew danger was coming. Everyone began to panic. Patients were evacuated first, loaded onto trucks as fast as possible before driving off to safety, leaving the soldiers there to defend the place. When they ran out of trucks and other vehicles, as the sickest patients went first, the rest were left to be defended by the soldiers. There was no other option.
It was then that time stopped for Chris. He heard Andrew calling to him as he ran away from the hospital. He'd clearly been left behind as he wasn't physically injured. Chris turned to see him and a few others, running as fast as they could. Chris and the others encouraged them to run faster as the planes closed in.
Only ten metres away, the hospital was destroyed, bombed beyond recognition. The blast slammed into Andrew and the others running for safety.
Andrew stumbled and collapsed into Chris' arms as Chris ran out to him. Kneeling on the ground, Chris grabbed him tightly. Andrew was crying and groaning. Chris looked down to see blood covering Andrew's back. Shrapnel.
"Oh God," Chris whispered. "A-Andrew? You alright?"
Andrew couldn't answer; he was in too much pain to answer.
With missile fire all around them, Chris dragged Andrew towards the jeeps, wanting to get him sheltered as they fought off the planes.
"Major! We need to get out of here! Now!" Chris yelled as it became apparent the planes were going to outgun them.
The Major hesitated, looking to the Lt Col for direction.
"What are you waiting for? Get those injured into the trucks and return fire as we go! We need to retreat! Now!" the Lt Col said as he sent another missile towards the planes.
That spurred everyone into action. The injured were gathered up, the dead left where they lay, and the missiles were shot into the planes as the trucks sped off into the distance, hoping to escape them.
"Adam. They've just hit Sydney. They're pelting it with bombs. Everyone's terrified and trying to fight back, but most are just running scared." Hamish ran in bearing the bad news.
"Shit. They're moving fast. We need to move now, sir, or they're going to overrun us before we can fight back," Adam said.
"I agree. Get word to your men. We're moving in now. Close in around them. Tell them to head south and try and keep them at bay from there. I've already ordered our planes into combat. Hopefully we can outnumber them. The Navy's off attempting to destroy their troop carriers and cut off their reinforcements. Do you think the plans are enough?" the Chief said.
"It's all we've got. We can only hope it works," Adam said.
"Adam, Chris just called in, they've lost one of the hospitals, they've got several badly injured with them. They're attempting to help them as they escape," Hamish said as he got off the radio. He'd been communicating with all the groups as best he could to help feed the planning.
"Shit. This could only get worse," Adam said.
"One of the injured is Andrew. Got hit with shrapnel, Chris said he's bleeding badly. They're trying to find the nearest hospital that's still intact to see if they can't save them," Hamish said.
Adam swallowed. That was worse. "This is all my fault. I should never have let him fight. Seb warned it would get him killed," he said.
"He-he's not dead, not yet, but Chris… Chris said it's not looking good," Hamish said.
"Well, there's nothing we can do for them, not from here. Look, tell them to do what they can. We're beginning our assault on the Chinese, the joint venture between the State and the rebels. Get onto all the groups and tell them to close in. Those in the north at the Queensland border need to come south to reinforce the troops down here. That's where the Chinese are, so that's where we'll pin them down. And then we wait for them to give in," Adam said.
"Right. I'm onto it, Adam," Hamish said.
"Good boy," Adam said with a smile. "Now all we need to do is hope this plan works."
Wil landed back at the camp after he'd gone off searching for a working radio at one of the old Army bases. "We're moving out!"
"We're moving out? What's the plan?" Julian said as Wil and his small party returned.
"We're moving south, blocking the Chinese. Get camp packed up. We're needed now!" Wil said.
The urgency swamped the camp as everyone hurriedly packed up and got ready to march. Wil was amazed at their eagerness. He'd never seen them get ready so quickly. In less than an hour, they were on the move, heading south back towards Sydney as fast as they could.
"The end is nearing, can't you taste it in the air, Jules?" Chassy said as he marched enthusiastically beside Julian.
"Yeah, it's feeling good. Hopefully, this will be it," Julian said.