I imagine this is gonna be hard to grasp, but this place was designed to not make sense, Cap. It's... the way it is so that people like us can meet. So here we are.
[Lugo shrugs with only his right shoulder, sniffles a little and pulls up the hem of his shirt to wipe at the gore on his face, trying to dislodge dried blood. His nose starts to bleed fresh, and he seems less than happy to have to move his left arm at all, carrying it in such a way that it's clear he's broken it. His left hand is limp, twitching and trembling occasionally.]
I guess... I should tell someone. I haven't told anyone that would understand, I don't think. I need to get it off my chest. I told you I left my body in Dubai:
We were there to observe and report. Take a little walk through the desert and go home. Sand storms... Sand storms like you'd never believe. They just rose up and swallowed the whole city, wiped it off the map. We thought it ended there, but then we got this transmission. So off we went. And then, suddenly... suddenly there was a whole lot of killing... a whole lot of dying. We started looking for the guy who made the transmission. He was the only reason we were there in the first place.
This Konrad guy... I guess my Captain knew him. He wanted to find Konrad. Save him, maybe. I guess he didn't realize it'd go as badly as it did. Everyone wants to be the hero, right? It's the only reason I see that someone would walk right into your line of fire.
Some men die heroes. Some go stupid. Some go kicking and screaming. Me and all those poor rogue bastards in Dubai... Christ, we didn't get any of that. We went like dogs. I suppose... in my case, I earned it.
My daddy always used to say, "John, it's appointed every man once to die." I just never thought it'd be so soon. I wonder if he knew. One moment, you think you're hot shit. Think you're invincible. Then, bang. You take that shot. And if you're lucky, you survive... get a chance to learn from it.
[He smiles placidly, shakes his head, though there's something dead in his eyes, something broken. There's no going back.]
I think I came to you... because I hoped that you'd know... maybe you could tell me why something like this would happen. Maybe you can help me figure out why things got so fucked. I wanted to know... if maybe this will leave me, or if it's going to stay forever. I feel... I feel the darkness... the same shit hiding under everything in the desert...
[He trails off, silent, shaking like a leaf with his eyes so glazed and distant that it's hard to tell if he can hear anything at all. He knows there will be no forgiveness. His sins will be with him... probably indefinitely. It's a terrifying thought.
Slowly, carefully, Lugo lowers himself to the ground, sitting with his legs folded under him. He breathes deep, trying to calm himself, clear his head a bit, but it's suddenly very hard to do. Before he even knows what hit him, he feels a warm flush in his cheeks, the soft brushing itch of tears tracing down to his chin. When he licks at one caught in the corner of his mouth, it tastes like salt and blood.]
Sorry I took so long... this was the hardest tag... ever. :|
[Lugo shrugs with only his right shoulder, sniffles a little and pulls up the hem of his shirt to wipe at the gore on his face, trying to dislodge dried blood. His nose starts to bleed fresh, and he seems less than happy to have to move his left arm at all, carrying it in such a way that it's clear he's broken it. His left hand is limp, twitching and trembling occasionally.]
I guess... I should tell someone. I haven't told anyone that would understand, I don't think. I need to get it off my chest. I told you I left my body in Dubai:
We were there to observe and report. Take a little walk through the desert and go home. Sand storms... Sand storms like you'd never believe. They just rose up and swallowed the whole city, wiped it off the map. We thought it ended there, but then we got this transmission. So off we went. And then, suddenly... suddenly there was a whole lot of killing... a whole lot of dying. We started looking for the guy who made the transmission. He was the only reason we were there in the first place.
This Konrad guy... I guess my Captain knew him. He wanted to find Konrad. Save him, maybe. I guess he didn't realize it'd go as badly as it did. Everyone wants to be the hero, right? It's the only reason I see that someone would walk right into your line of fire.
Some men die heroes. Some go stupid. Some go kicking and screaming. Me and all those poor rogue bastards in Dubai... Christ, we didn't get any of that. We went like dogs. I suppose... in my case, I earned it.
My daddy always used to say, "John, it's appointed every man once to die." I just never thought it'd be so soon. I wonder if he knew. One moment, you think you're hot shit. Think you're invincible. Then, bang. You take that shot. And if you're lucky, you survive... get a chance to learn from it.
[He smiles placidly, shakes his head, though there's something dead in his eyes, something broken. There's no going back.]
I think I came to you... because I hoped that you'd know... maybe you could tell me why something like this would happen. Maybe you can help me figure out why things got so fucked. I wanted to know... if maybe this will leave me, or if it's going to stay forever. I feel... I feel the darkness... the same shit hiding under everything in the desert...
[He trails off, silent, shaking like a leaf with his eyes so glazed and distant that it's hard to tell if he can hear anything at all. He knows there will be no forgiveness. His sins will be with him... probably indefinitely. It's a terrifying thought.
Slowly, carefully, Lugo lowers himself to the ground, sitting with his legs folded under him. He breathes deep, trying to calm himself, clear his head a bit, but it's suddenly very hard to do. Before he even knows what hit him, he feels a warm flush in his cheeks, the soft brushing itch of tears tracing down to his chin. When he licks at one caught in the corner of his mouth, it tastes like salt and blood.]