A Soldier Lost

          "Another battle... seen enough of 'em to know what to expect. At least... that's what I thought."

          A green camoflaughed Marine overlooked the destruction before him. Bodies of both Human and Covenant forces were spread out in different positions on the ground. The Marine was standing in his comrades blood. He looked around and pulled off the dog tags of his fellow comrades; his brothers in arms. He had served in the UNSC Marine Corps for three years and had seen more battles and blood then he originally would have preferred. Unlike the civillian population who thought Humanity was winning this war... they were way off. Thousands of deaths had been suffered. Possibly millions. Very few injuried in this war.

          Lance Corporal John Hoffman stood there. In a trance he could not break. Just picking up dog tag after dog tag. He felt tears form in his eyes as he overlooked a feminine body. He knew this woman. He could even smell the scent of her shampoo. The one he had become so familiar with. Her red hair was drenched in blood, making her hair a darker red. She was lying face first on the metallic floor. Her body was unmoving, lifeless. John began to shed the tears he had held back for three years. He had been hardened enough to witness his friends die. But never his lover. His own girlfriend, Sarah.

        He fell to his knees. His armored pants legs were becoming drenched in thick blood. But he did not notice. He was too enticed on the scene he had prayed to God would never be set before him. He was in a state of dismay, depression, sorrow dotted his soul. He could not stand the pain that he was experiencing. He never could have imagined this. But, it had happened.

        "Why'd you have to die?" He asked, expecting an answer.

          He had hoped she would get up, hoped she would arise from the ground, spit out some of the blood, exclaim she was alright and had merely pretended to be dead so that the Covenant did not kill her. But he knew the truth. She was dead. She was never coming back. There was a loud noise eminating from the door in front of him. John was knocked out of his trance and walked towards the door, quitely, quickly. He did not want to alert his presence to nearby hostiles.

        As he approached the door, it opened. Revealing a large figure in the door way. At first glance, it looked like a towering monster ready to rip any of it's opponents apart. But, John soon could clearly see it was a Covenant Elite. It raised it's Plasma Rifle at him and before he could reach for his pistol, the Elite had fired six super-heated plasma shots into his head. John's body fell to the ground. Lifeless. The last thing John ever saw, was the Elite chuckling and celebrating it's victory.

      "Families are destroyed. Lives are taken. Men and women are broken. The pain suffered from war cannot be repaired. Not even in this war we fight. Those alien bastards are slaughtering our forces. But, we will defeat them. One day. One day."