White Sheep

Chapter 18 - Like a Lamb to the Slaughter

Chapter 18

Well, I'm back off my week away – and thank you to everyone who wished me well and ultimately supported me in my short break. Ironically, I still worked my 9-5 job through it, and yet it still felt like a break somehow. It felt refreshing.

It also gave me plenty of time to think about my fanfics, plan ahead on some of them, and ultimately tighten the ship as it were. I was able to identify several mistakes I made on some, and look to minimise or fix them going forward. One thing I will be changing is arbitrary word limits on chapters. Sometimes it feels like I've been aiming for a specific word count on some, and padding chapters when they don't quite match it. From now on, that will stop.

Chapters won't be drastically different from what you're used to, but in White Sheep for instance, it might mean you get anywhere between 7-10k, as opposed to me always striving for an exact number. Some chapters do better longer... some do better shorter. I'll be focusing on quality over quantity.

Beta: College Fool

Cover Art: Kegi Springfield

Chapter 18 – Like a Lamb to the Slaughter

It was already dark by the time they reached the docks, but there were convenient flashes of light to help illuminate the way through the broken fence on the side. Somewhat less convenient was the various explosions that caused said light. Mercury winced as another one shook the docks, followed by the rattle of gunfire and a Bullhead zooming by overhead.

"This isn't a good idea!" he said, voice raised over the ferocious noise. He panted, hands on prosthetic knees as he wished not for the first time that they went a little higher and thus robbed him of being exhausted from running at all. The idiots didn't hear him, or chose not to, as Cinder's little brother held open a barbed wire fence as one might a door and gestured for the girls to crawl through in a gentlemanly fashion. Mercury growled and stumbled through himself, though not without another complaint. "I'll say it again; this is a bad idea. Have you guys maybe missed the part where this sounds like a warzone?"

"Of course not," Red said. "That's where we're headed."

"Why?"

"To check it out, obviously..." The girl hit her head and made a 'duh' sound.

"Words can't even begin to explain how stupid that plan is."

"You can stay behind if you're afraid, friend-Mercury," Orange-girl said. "We are combat-ready and more than capable of dealing with whatever this is alone."

Yeah sure, he'd have loved to take them up on that offer. Unfortunately, he was more afraid of what lay behind him than ahead. He didn't care to contemplate what fate would await him back at Beacon if even a single hair on the idiot's head got burned. Mercury scowled and shoved his hands into his pockets. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

Hopefully it won't be anything serious and we can get back in one piece. A follow-up explosion behind some warehouses a little distance away seemed to laugh in the face of that idea, but maybe it was just an industrial accident? Late at night... when no one was here... with a Bullhead flying overhead.

The straws he grasped at just kept on slipping away.

He followed the three lemmings as they clambered through the fence and towards a warehouse. Red said something about how they'd have a better view of the battlefield from up high, and rolled her eyes when he pointed out just about everyone else would have a better view of them if they were up high as well.