Suddenly the roaring sounds of the simulated combat silenced as colonel Blade's message came through on Oliver's radio. As the orders to stand down reached the young tiger he could see the OPFOR troops standing down too. For some unknown reason the exercise had been halted prior to the roughriders completing their objectives. For the tiger this outcome wasn't really satisfying. Ending things prematurely without a solid conclusion just felt wrong for him. It was like picking up a girl at the bar, take her home and then find out that she doesn't want to go beyond first base. It just felt like a big disappointment to him, especially when you consider that the Rough Riders came very close to victory.

For a moment Oliver watched how the OPFOR units packed up and moved out. He could not help to think than that this was the most ridicules exercise he'd ever participated in during his short military career. A bandit scenario with tanks, military grade GEARS and spy satellites just didn't make much sense. None the less the tiger did enjoy the adrenaline rush he got from the chaotic attrition battle at the OPFOR base. It was only now that Oliver realized that sweat was pooring down from his head and that his mouth was as dry as the desert. He could reall go for a nice cold beer now but that had to wait. Standard army doctrine demanded that the GEAR pilots would sit through the agonizing debriefing first.

Oliver moved his GEAR into formation with Blade, putting down the Saxknot wheels for additional speed. Thank god all the limiters from the virtual damage had been removed. As the tiger moved out he called back his drone. He had almost forgotten that his bird was still in the sky and it was almost out of juice. Oliver opened up the entire units channel and spoke. "This was without doubt the weirdest exercise i've done since joining the LDF. The scenario was totally off and the ending doesn't make sense. I hope they have something nice and cold to drink standing ready for us when we return"