Eric had looked up at the medic as they took off. His one eye socket still wept blood, and the look on his face is lost and distant. He takes those deep, careful breathes steadily, "There...is alot of pain...a lot..." He lets out a hiss as the needles are pressed into his skin. And he takes a moment or two to enjoy the first rush. He nods, "Tripping...is probably a better thing then the pain right now..." Eric's eye shuts finally, and passes out. The rest of the ride is silent from the operator.

He wakes later, under the knife. Seeing the forceps come down to pull the 3 inch shard of glass out of his eye socket. It took 5 nurses the two surgeons and 3 orderlies to hold him down long enough to put him out again. At even then through sheer force of will, he tossed one of those orderlies across the room before the needle hit his shoulder and he is out. He wakes in a room, heart monitor beeping, a cast on his left arm where they found a bunch of micro fractures in his fore arm, both ankles bound up from sprains, it's a wonder he was able to walk on them. But it's the mass of bandages and thick gauze that covers his eye that tells him the true damage.

When the doctor came in and gave him the low down he had looked at the man with his single good eye and asked simply, "How long until I can get back out there?"
__________________

[u][b]Four Weeks Later
Blue Sword Ltd HQ, 
Perth, Australia[/b][/u]

Eric is jerked out of a doze as the C130 jolted as it hit the tarmac. Back in Perth, after spending some weeks in rehabilitation, another few days to make sure he's still qualified despite his depth perception issues. And atleast 5 days at home in Lethbridge, on forced leave, to give him some time to recover and process. He'd used the time to make sure he's in fighting fit.

He got to his feet carefully grabbing his kit bag and duffle. Getting up to join the line of Blue Sword troopers who are shipping in from leave. There are some mutterings as they look over at the thin, gaunt looking man with the grey toned ceramic eyepatch over one eye. alot of the words are curious, "Why is this guy here? He can't be able to shoot with that right? Is he Recon? Intell?" Someone a little over murmurs, "The gossip chains say one of the elite groups got shit on, he's the last one left..." Still another mutters, "I hear it was Osprey...I think that's Eric...the only member of the duo team...his partner was killed in their last op...that's one mad muthafucka over there boys...to still be walking after that shit mang." The rear opened, and the bay master calls out, "Move move! Clear the bay! Do not make me wait for you! We have gear to unload after you get off ladies!"

The Bay Master quiets though as Eric steps by, and even tugs the tip of his cap in respect to the man as he passes. Eric just looks ahead, the face of a man who's focused at the moment.

He steps out into the Australian heat, and takes a long deep breath of that warm dusty air.

In the distance he can hear a booming voice. Victor in full combat gear lopping along side some of the newbies, "What ever you may say about your military training, you are in Blue Sword Limited now. You are fodder for my training course. You are under my command until I say you are ready to step out there and represent this unit as a combat operative! I have stood beside giants literally and figuratively in the Marines, Special Forces and Black Operations groups. I have seen men bat grenades back at insurgents with their bare hands in the midst of open fire fights. I have seen men take rounds to the chest and come back and bury a bayonet in to the throat of the man who shot them! Until you can do that, cure cancer and then do my taxes at the same time you are not ready for Blue Sword. Do you see that Ammo bunker? Move! Laps!" One of the troops had the courage to call out, "How many sir!?" Victor turned to them, "Until I tell you to stop! Move!" He draws the rifle club off his hip and swings, sending the men running to stay ahead of the giant of a man.

Eric grins, "Like coming back home."

He turned, and started towards the administration building. He didn't go far though. He'd been trying to learn how to atleast approximate the sense of depth perception. And he wasn't perfect yet. but he could tell that the bad bitch herself is approaching him. He takes a few more steps, stops and snaps to attention. Major Natalie Denisova, no one in Blue Sword didn't know about the Major and the Master Sergeant. They are Blue Swords super weapons. Natalie with her rotary gun, and Victor with his Grenade machine gun. He'd been in the base taverna, and seen the pair put away 40 drinks between them, get roaring drunk, get into a bar fight with some visiting jarheads, then come out the next day fit and ready to go as if nothing happened. He waited until he guessed she was about 7 feet from him then snapped off a smart salute, "Madam." He tried not to wince when he could see her eyes roaming over him. The cast on his arm, the bandages peeking out of the tops of his boots, the bruises from where he had ping ponged around in the back of that car. Some of them still hadn't cleared. others were fading to a sickly yellow. But he felt it clear when she looked at his eye. He could feel the patch over it. And knew it looked bad, they had to cut open his face to get the shard out, and there was still a ruddy surgery scar showing over the top of the patch. Without thinking his hand came up to rest over the patch, his fingers briefly running over it, "Markus was my brother madam. I didn't think it'd be the right thing to roll over and leave off after what we did, and what he died for." He nodded, "There's always the ones somewhere, who somehow, stepped into the fire, and somehow managed to step out, burned, but alive. I'm just lucky. I heard about what happened to you madam. That was a miracle. But yeah we both stepped into that fire and came out. I don't want to leave the heat yet."

Eric followed along, hiding the slight hitch in his step from thw two nearly healed sprained ankles he had. He's mobile atleast, under his own power. When they entered Natalie's office he waited until she sat down, then sat down himself carefully, letting out a little grunt. He sat and listened through the talk, nodding as they went. He hummed, "Retirement...piloting a desk. Madam, all due respect. I think I'd being do you, the company, Mankind, my brother may he rest in peace, and myself a huge disrespect if I jumped on a desk and rode it down to the end. Dr. Strangelove I am not, but I'd rather jump on a rocket, aimed for the heart of an enemy stronghold. I don't want to leave the heat. And if push comes to shove, I'd rather leave my last out there in the shit, then here somewhere bubbling behind a desk madam." He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry, "If I can still be of use, out in the field Madam, then that's where I want to be."

He nods slow, "I'd like to take that fire course madam. Prove that I can do this. I still got the chops I can do it. I may not be one hundred percent, but I can do it. I know I can. Skills like what we've all earned here in Blue Sword..." He trailed off a little as the rookie squad from earlier came tearing past the building, could be seen from almost every window in the room, and Victor's booming voice, "This isn't even full kit? You all said you were in the army? Is this what the army has left since I left? What the fuck! Keep moving all of you!" He had a large MG likely a .50. Held with one hand and arm, firing blanks into the air as he strode along behind the squad, "Until the one in the back stops flinching every time I pull the trigger we are not stopping!"

Eric grins, "We can't let the Master Sarge have all the fun can we? Madam, as much as I respect you taking your time...I think we both know where I need to be. I wanna be out there, walking and firing, I'll do what ever it takes, option A, riding a desk, no madam. That aint me." He gets to his feet, "Where ever you need me to go, what ever you need me to be, I'll do it. I got to much left in me."

Eric had to let out a long deep breath then and nods, "As a homage to my fallen brother Madam, I'll take any test that's needed. I got way too much to give and there's still loads of things to do." He nods and smiles, "Whatever it takes madam." He grunts then and sinks back down into the seat carefully, "Sorry...not one hundred percent. I can do this though madam I swear."