Protect & Survive(2)

(Crash Site - 1:00 PM )

The humanoid figure was looking at the burned up helicopter and the corpses of the soldiers and pilots with the rain still going on. He looks at one of the burned corpses and spots a logo on it. It wasn't the GOC logo. It was the logo of the SCP foundation. 

'Their logo is different from those guys. There might be different organisations or factions in this world. But which one of them is trustworthy?' He thought.

The humanoid figure decides to sit on top of a tree branch and wait for now, since the source he was being drawn to hasn't moved yet.

"Could he or she that I'm being drawn to be related to this organization? Looks like I'll just have to ask that person who I'm being drawn to."

The humanoid figure looks at the corpses and then floats towards the burned wreckage, "Best if I bury them. That's the least I can do for these poor souls."

———

(Cave - 1:50 PM)

Amelia slowly opened her eyes, as she did, she stood up and looked around and saw Rodeo lying on the ground with his hands behind his back with the campfire still there.

"Rodeo?"

Looking at her at a quick pace, Rodeo then quickly gets up and hugs Amelia which surprises her.

"Oh, thank God, I thought you might have gone into a coma or something." He said with relief.

Amelia wasn't a hugger but she just pats him on the back, "Rodeo, how long was I out?"

Rodeo then stops hugging her and answers, "It's been at least one and a half hours since you passed out. I tried to contact Johnson and the rest with my phone but it was unreachable."

"So we're basically stuck here."

"For now at least."

Amelia checks her labcoat pocket but only found her wallet and SCP keycard. Her phone wasn't there.

"My phone isn't here."

"I think you might have dropped it when we... crashed." Rodeo immediately looks down. 

Amelia notices this, "Rodeo did something happen, when I was unconscious?"

"The GOC blew up the helicopter and everybody who was on board. I was able to get you out, but not the others... they're gone."

Amelia eyes widen at the mention of the GOC, if they were here then they might be after Rodeo. 

"Are you sure it was the GOC?" She asked, trying to know whether it was true or not.

"I saw the attack helicopter had a logo with a blue star and circle on it. So yeah, I'm sure." 

There was silence between the two for a moment until then Rodeo said, "Are you used to people dying in front of you, Dr. Amelia?"

"I've seen D-class die in front of me many times without feeling any sort of regret. Because..."

"They were fodder for you to use, and since they commited crimes you had no reason to sympathize with them even if they were falsely accused of those crimes. Am I right?"

"Yes."

"Then what about the soldiers?"

Amelia took a deep breath before saying, "I was no stranger to MTF casualties. Everytime I would see them psychologically scarred and brutally injured by SCPs or in a body bag or worse... you would think that someone like me who has worked with the foundation for years would be used to it and I did... but after Green it started getting to me. I'm glad that he is alright but... I'm still afraid about him going back in the field. So my answer, Rodeo is both yes and no. "

"I see."

"This world is like I said, Rodeo, unforgiving."

"I know this world is unforgiving. I read the SCP articles back in my world and I know that this place is a nightmare to live in, but that doesn't mean you can just throw away people's lives for research or get used to people dying in front of you. I am not that person, Dr. Amelia Buck, who is used to seeing people die in front of him and this was my first time seeing very good people die in front of me... just because I was a target for another organization." He said with sorrow.

"I understand, Rodeo. But that's just how life is here. You have to move on."

"Yeah... as if moving on is gonna make me feel any better."

Amelia sighs, "I think the rain has calmed down a bit. We should get a move on."

"Yeah." He said still feeling down.

Rodeo and Amelia both get up, Rodeo extinguishes the fire and the two both exit the cave. 

(10 minutes later)

Rodeo and Amelia were walking down the forest with the rain having calmed down, finding a way to get out. Rodeo was not in his cheerful mood and he wasn't even talking. Amelia found this change in behavior quite surprising. Amelia for the first time in her life decides to stir up a conversation. 

"I wanted to ask you something, regarding 'Bites the Dust'."

"Nice way to stir up a conversation, Dr. Amelia. Ask about my abilities and make me feel better." He said sarcastically and frustratingly.

"At least, I'm trying to do something at least."

"Well, you're doing a very average job at it. But anyways, what do you want to ask regarding my third bomb?"

"How far back can you rewind time with it?"

"Only one hour." 

"What?! Just one hour only."

"What, you thought it could rewind time even further than that?"

"Yes."

"Sorry but it can only rewind time back to one hour... you know I wanted to use it to save those guys. But you were unconscious and I don't think 'Bites the Dust' works on normal animals." He said looking down.

"Sorry if I-"

Rodeo cuts her off, "It's alright. You know you really need to get along with people more... like how you're getting along with me." 

"I know I should be a bit more open to people... but I'm just me."

Rodeo halted his steps and even Amelia as well followed.

"Dr. Amelia, you're more than just yourself. You might be cold and stern sometimes and not too open with people, yes, but... you have other qualities in you. Remember how you trusted me with my plan and were even worried about me getting killed, and you even showed some emotion towards Green, right?"

"How did..."

Rodeo cuts her off again, "Green told me you had a worried look, when he almost flatlined. You even held his hand, because you cared."

"Oh... t-that... was uhh... *cough* I was just there for him, that's all." She said with a light blush on her cheeks.

Rodeo chuckle, "Of course, you were."

*Thud!*

"Did you hear something?"

Both of them looked at the ground and noticed that there was a…

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

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A grenade next to their feet.

Rodeo quickly pushes Amelia out of the way, and Rodeo tries to jump out the grenade's blast radius, unfortunately it explodes and although he wasn't close to the explosion, the force of the explosion threw him a few feet away. 

"Rodeo!"

Then she hears the noise of a gun being cocked, she quickly turns around and sees a GOC soldier pointing a SAR9X pistol at her. 

"Well, well, well, and I thought the gals at the GOC were pretty."

"Burn in hell." She said, glaring at the soldier.

"Well now that's just rude."

Amelia starts backing up while keeping her glare at him, but then she finds herself backed up against a tree. 

The GOC soldier came closer to her and said, "So tell me, why are you here with that freak?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

The GOC soldier points the pistol at her and continues, "Give me some information and maybe I'll just kill that freak and let you live.

"Do your worst."

The GOC soldier shook his head not liking her answer. Rodeo got up from the ground and saw the GOC soldier was about to pull the trigger. Rodeo quickly ran up to him and grabbed his combat knife from his holster, surprising him but then before he could move a muscle, Rodeo quickly swung the knife on the soldier's neck and slit his throat in the process. 

The soldier started choking on his own blood and then fell to the ground dead. Amelia looked at the scene in shock.

"Oh... fuck." Rodeo looks at the soldier's lifeless corpse with shock and horror even though his facial expression didn't change. Rodeo never in his life had killed someone and what he did just now horrified him.

Next moment, he drops the knife from his hand and starts hyperventilating. 

Seeing this, Amelia quickly runs up to him and says, "Rodeo breath, you have to breathe." 

Rodeo and Amelia, then heard some footsteps and saw two more GOC soldiers wielding M4A1 with silencer and scope attachments. 

"What the hell is that?" Says one of them.

The second one then looked at the corpse of his dead comrade and shouted, "He killed Kenny!"

"You bastard!" Yelled the first one angrily.

"You will pay for that you son of a bitch!" The second one yelled enraged.

The soldiers were about to shoot them, but Rodeo quickly grabs the knife and throws it at one of the soldiers face piercing through the helmet and into his head, resulting in the soldier going limp. 

The other soldier looked at his friend dying in front of him but was then punched in the face by Rodeo, knocking him to the ground. The soldier was about to get up but saw a pistol pointed at his head by none other than Rodeo. 

"I'm warning you... stay down. I didn't mean to kill your friends... I just did it... out of instinct!" Rodeo said his voice cracking a bit and breathing heavily due to what he just did right now.

The soldier stayed quiet and said nothing. Rodeo and Amelia then start walking away but the soldier pulls out a SAR9X pistol from his holster and is about to shoot them, but Rodeo quickly turns around and shoots him in the head, and he goes limp. 

Rodeo then approaches the soldier who had the knife embedded in his skull and pulls it out, takes the M4 with him including their pistols as well. 

Rodeo then approaches Amelia, "Ok, you carry a rifle and a pistol and I'll carry one rifle and a pistol as well."

He then gives the rifle and pistol to her

And then Amelia says, "Rodeo... I don't know how to fire a gun." 

Rodeo then uses the strap attached to the rifle to his back, "I'll... check on that part later. For now, keep them with you. Who knows if we'll encounter more of them."

Rodeo then looks at the bodies and starts checking their pockets for any fresh magazines for the rifle and pistol. Luckily he did and even found silencer attachments for the pistols as well. He takes the magazines and attachment and keeps most of them in his hollow stomach and gives the rest to Amelia and she keeps them in her lab coat pockets.

Rodeo looked at the dead soldiers, and his hands started shaking, he then immediately gripped his hands tightly. 

Amelia notices this, "Rodeo... are you feeling ok?"

"I'm... just... " He let out a sigh, "We'll talk later, right now we need to keep moving."

Amelia nods and straps the rifle to her back while keeping the pistol in her hands and moves forward. 

Rodeo takes one last look at the soldiers and says, "I'm sorry... I really didn't... mean to harm... you guys. I hope you rest in peace." He said with regret.

Rodeo then starts moving forward as he wasn't sure whether he did the right thing or not. He was feeling conflicted about killing them, but otherwise they would have killed them both. He even showed one of the soldiers mercy but instead he tried to kill him and Rodeo pulled the trigger on him to protect himself and Amelia. 

Rodeo now understands one thing, in this world you need to protect yourselves and the ones you care about knowing full well you cannot reason with or show mercy to an enemy who is hell bent on killing you no matter what. 

Rodeo wasn't happy with this realization, but it was true either way.