[h3]The Theocracy of Aorolach[/h3]_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[i][b]Patrol near Camp Frostbite[/b][/i]
[i]Arctic Northlands, Malthecien-Ashtarian border[/i]
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[b]The world seemed to turn upside down.[/b] Without knowing how or why, Elthian suddenly found himself lying on his back. He had trouble breathing, as if a great weight laid on his chest. Vision blurred and half-buried by snow and chunks of permafrost, Elthian dimly registered the sounds of gunfire and screaming raging around him. Slowly, he came to, the electronics in his suit recalibrating themselves. His HUD flashed into existence, blinking all manners of alerts. He groaned, and sat up...

[b]"SNIPER!"[/b] Invoker Theuron screamed, grabbing Elthian's arm roughly and yanking him to his feet. He shoved him towards a snowy bluff ten paces away. "Take cover NOW Acolyte!" He didn't wait for a response, instead turning and emptying his battery into the distance.

Barely comprehending, Elthian dove behind the bluff, and was soon accompanied by several others from his squad. He noticed, with a sinking feeling in both his stomachs, the absence of nearly half of their original force. He heard Invoker Theuron curse, and suddenly the world was upside down again. Elthian found himself on his back, with a still-cursing Invoker Theuron next to him. 

"He's using goddamn anti-[i]armor[/i] rounds!" Invoker Theuron said incredulously, then turned to Elthian. "Acolyte, see if you can get a read on him, track the trajectory. The rest of you," He turned to the other surviving members of their patrol. "Provide suppressing fire! Use all your goddamn batteries on him if you need to. GO!" Invoker Theuron barked.

Supercharged plasma suddenly filled the air, and Elthian quickly began running simulations. The built-in processor in his suit hummed with power as it greedily sucked in air from his ventilators. Calculations ran across his HUD as a target icon swam across his vision. Finally, an alert popped up on his screen: INSUFFICIENT DATA. Elthian cursed the father, and turned to the Invoker. "Not enough data! You need to bait out another shot!"

Invoker Theuron gave no indication that he had heard, but suddenly he jumped up at cover, only to duck down immediately afterwards. The world tilted again, and two members of the remaining squad gave startled yells, unnaturally cut off. "Got 'em!" Elthian yelled triumphantly. Invoker Theuron gave him a thumbs-up. "I'm giving you a direct line to Central! Call in hell, Acolyte!" 

Elthian swallowed hard, but nodded his assent. "Central, this is Acolyte Elthian of Patrol Squad D4N02. We have a hostile sniper approximately five kilometers away positioned on a hilltop. He is using heavy anti-armor rounds. We need immediate fire support. I repeat, we need [i]immediate[/i] fire support." His heart thudding in his chest, he only had to wait for a moment before the reply came through.

"Understood Acolyte. Sending in a Crusader fighter equipped for low-atmosphere fire support. ETA sixty seconds." Elthian pumped his fists. They were saved.