Her skin had healed, her eyes full of vitality. “Hi Luke, I saw that you were on the way back on one of the surveillance cameras.

“Keeping tabs on me, eh.” Luke smiled. “Coming in?”

She nodded and followed him in.

Luke’s accommodation was spacious. On one side a large ornate double bed, on the other a large sofa situated in front of a holographic display television.

Luke walked over the sofa. “Want to sit and watch some TV?”

There was no response leading to Luke turning around.

Lisa was standing beside the bed. “Well I was thinking, there is a good chance we might die tomorrow. Why wait? That is, if that you would like?” Her top fell from her shoulders revealing her perky breasts.

I like this side of her.

Luke walked towards her. “That is exactly what I want. You are so beautiful.”

She whispered into his ear. “I was hoping you would say that.”

He felt her soft breasts with his hands. They were the perfect size and fitted nicely onto his palms. She kissed him, then sucked on his lower lip. Luke could feel his penis bulge.

She is so perfect. I hope this day never ends.

Luke

A green expanse in every direction. To the West, a large tropical forest wilderness full of exotic creatures and a high diversity of plant life. To the East, and separated by a mile wide river, farmland made up of green fields broken up by hedgerows stretch to the horizon.

John and Luke were at a former viewing area at the edges of the city of Xenos. It was now in the final processes of being fortified and turned into a defensive strong point.

Luke stood in admiration.

“What are we doing here?” John asked. He had been jittery all morning.

“Timothy asked us to check their defense, you know for the big battle ahead,” Luke replied. “Don’t worry, I know what’s wrong with ya!”

“What do you mean by that? John said. His eyes wide open.

Luke laughed aloud. “Ever since this planet’s wonders started working on Yvonne, you’ve been like glued to her.”

“Well, yeah. She looks so hot now. Can you blame me?”

“Come on.”  Luke waved his hand to him to follow. “We need to check the defenses inside too.”

They walked inside and inside a tram. There was plenty of space, The other passengers were sullen with blotched red eyes.

They are terrified over the upcoming battle. And they should be.

Their next stop was ten minutes away. Machine gun positions and bunkers had been set to make the wide corridor would be transformed into a killing zone. It was part of one ring of fortifications of many on each layer of the city.

“Something must have gone wrong with the infection. I think he ran here out of fear rather than malicious intent,” Luke replied.

John’s eyebrows raised. “So Tomas must have fought back against it. Fair dues.”

“Indeed. We should keep a vial of his blood. It might prove useful in the future. There should be a medical kit somewhere in here. At least his death will not have been in vain.”

Minutes later, with the vial of blood safely tucked away, they went back outside. The sweat dripped from them once more as they made their way back to their assigned heavy gun.

“Do you think we will survive, Luke?” John asked as he surveyed the vast expanse of sand.

“I trust in Timothy; we will survive only if we are victorious. He will lead us to that victory,”

Luke replied, “We must stop it. It could do untold damage inside to the command and control of the planetary defence.”

John nodded. “Come on, we better hurry. I don’t understand though. The infection seems to have been delayed in Tomas.”

“Yes, it appears that we still have much to learn,” Luke replied as he opened the heavy door.

Cool air hit them inside.

“Wow that feels good!” John exclaimed.

They were in a faded-white corridor, that smelled of disinfectant with blue doors on each side. The corridor sloped downwards to an underground compartment after a few metres.

Luke placed his finger on his lips as he motioned with his other hand for John to follow. Both gripped their guns.

They reached a bashed red door that had NO ENTRY written on it. They sneaked inside to find row after row of computer processors.

This must be the target.

A sound of rummaging.

The two Troopers walk forward in lock-step.

And there it is. Its legs flailing on the floor, its eyes bulging from their sockets. It speaks. “Kill me. Please kill me.”

The two Troopers open fire, shredding its body.

Silence, apart from the humming of the computers.

“What was that” John whispered.

The easy banter continued for several minutes. The sound of a battery gun firing brought it to an abrupt halt.

Yvonne scanned the landscape using binoculars. “Are we under attack?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Lisa replied. “It was just a test, I think.”

I hope that was not my last time to laugh.

John tapped Luke’s shoulder. “Come on, lover boy.”

With that, Luke’s hand slipped from Lisa’s, and he followed John down the rampart..

Troopers were scurrying this way and that.

Luke tapped John’s shoulder. “Is that Tomas? Does he look okay to you?”

John gasped. “No, he doesn’t. There’s something weird about his gait. Is one leg fatter than the other?”

“Yes, it is,” Luke replied. “And one arm is misshapen.”

They looked knowingly at each other.

He has been infected.

They quicken their pace and head straight towards the ghoulish Tomas.

However, it seems to sense them and break out into a hopping sprint.

“He’s going to the command centre,” Johns roars. “It could be a suicide attack.”

He runs past the main entrance and instead o maintenance tunnel.

The two men stop in front of it, panting in the extreme heat.

John looked over at Luke. “What do we do now?”

“I didn’t want you to see me like this.” Lisa turned her face away. It had turned a blotchy red with flakey skin.

“Don’t turn from me. Sure, look at me, I’m as bad. It’s just this cursed world. Today, could be our last day. I don’t want to spend it away from you.” He hold his hands out.

She turned back around and embraced once more. “You’re incorrigible, you know that don’t you.”

He whispered into her ear. “I love you.”

What was I thinking? Why did I say that?

She tightened her grip.

“Will you two get a room. We don’t need to see this sort of thing” John shouted out to all.

“Yes, get a room.” Yvonne added. Luke and Lisa giggled to each other .

“Your just jealous,” Luke replied looking back at John.

“Of course I am. Hey, move over and let me in.”

“As if!” Lisa interjected.

With that, they broke their embrace and turned to the others.

“It is good to see you though, John,” Lisa continued.

“He was like a lost puppy. I had to bring him to see you.”

They all laughed including the other three female Troopers manning the heavy gun.

Hours passed, and the ship became hot. Sweat dripped from Luke’s brow and those of the others. Every now and then, a Trooper would start to whisper, only to be shushed back to silence. There would be no waste of oxygen, not when all of their lives were at stake.

The most important life, that of Timothy, still hung in the balance. His chest heaving back and forth with each breath, bringing at least some solace to the others. They all knew that certain death awaited, even upon rescue, for abandonment of their positions if he did not make it.

Luke thought back to all the decisions that had brought him to this point. It had never been his intention to become a Trooper, and cannon fodder for the Empire. His father had become bedridden an orbit previously, and someone had to bring in the money to look after his three siblings.

At least the family will be compensated if I die.

Then his thoughts turned to Timothy. This was a man he could follow. Not one of the many incompetent commanders, he had heard about. Somebody worth dying for.

John has been cracking him up since they first met. And then there is Lisa.