The Boeing KC-46 was beginning its descent to Rio de Janeiro's Santos Dumont Airport. The pilots were notified of the warm weather, and the slow east wind blowing over the runway. It was nothing to be worried about, all of it was expected at noon in the Spring. Only few minutes later the landing gears touched the asphalt, a bit rougher than the pilot had hoped. He was still getting used to the new Boeing, which was given to Team Rainbow by the US Government. Their release to the military was slated to be 2018, and so nobody had time to get used to them yet.

The airplane soon came to a halt in the airport's apron, but there was no need for any stairs to be pulled up to it. Instead the cargo ramp slowly began opening, signaled by warning sounds. After their eyes got used to the bright light outside, the passengers could see two military transports parked about twenty meters from the plane. Two people were standing in front of them. They were familiar to everyone.

It didn't take more than five minutes for everybody to get their bags ready, walk down the ramp and stand in a line in front of the welcoming party. There were ten of them in total. And they were all looking at the BOPE operators in front of them.

'Welcome to Rio de Janeiro, Rainbows!" Vincente Souza looked over the group in front of him, taking note of the people Six has sent him. He was quite satisfied with the selection.

'I would shake everyone's hands, and take you guys on a tour, but I'm afraid time is of the essence here. The US Embassy is just a few blocks away, so let's get going. BOPE already set up a perimeter, so I'll brief you there.'

He stepped to one of the transport and opened its back door, while the other BOPE operator did the same.

'Alright; Monika, Grace, Maxim, James, and Mark; you will ride with Taina in the other transport. The rest of you will come with.'

The two brits grinned at each other, seemingly happy that they will not be split up. As Grace and Monika approached their designated van, James bowed his head and signaled toward the truck. 'Women first.'

'I hope this ride will not be long', said Monika, just loud enough for the men to hear her, then proceeded to enter the van behind Grace. Most likely out of respect Maxim was also let to go first by James and Mark. Taina took her place on the passenger seat by the driver.

Both vans full, they immediately began their way to the embassy.


'What do we know, Vincente', asked Jordan Trace. Unlike Taina, Vincente took his place in the back with the other Rainbows. He and Jordan were sitting closest to the driver, in front of each other.

'It is unusual that they would send ten of us to an operation,' Mike Baker pointed out, the brit was sitting next to Jordan. 'Adding the two of you, there are twelve Rainbows here already. Is it that bad?'

'It might be,' Vincente replied. 'We don't actually know much, that is why so many of you were sent. A group took the embassy and everyone in it hostages. They've already made many threats. First they said they have a bomb, then that they have some kind of bio-weapon. And because the embassy's network's been cut, we cannot verify anything.'

The transport fell silent. Everyone started thinking of the possibilities, and the job ahead. The procedures of an operation have been drilled in their heads, so most of them already had an idea of the tasks they will be getting.

'They sound like amatures. How do we know they are not just throwing around empty threats, so we take them seriously?'

'As I said, Mike, we don't.'

'Are they the White Mask,' asked Gustave Kateb the obvious question. The look he got from Vincente indicated that the answer would be the same as what Baker got.

'We'll have to start with gathering some intel. That is why Meghan was called, I'm guessing.' Jordan looked at the American, who was clearly listening to the conversation, while keeping her gaze on the roof.

'Yes', Vincente replied, 'and Monika. They will need to gather the information for us, so that we can create a plan.'

The Brazilian man could not continue, because the driver yelled back to them. 'We've arrived.'

The embassy was very close to the airport, so the ride only took a few minutes.

As standard protocol dictated, they all pulled on a mask to hide their faces, so they were not caught by the news' cameras. They were soon standing outside again, in a circle. The tall embassy was standing by President Wilson Avenue, which provided the police a big space to occupy. It looked like the police has already stopped all traffic on the streets around the embassy.

Vincente began talking.

'As you all know, Six has given me authority in this operation. We will be working together with the police and BOPE to stop this threat. As we currently lack any intel, and we don't know how prepared the opposition is, we will use callsigns from here on out.'

Everyone acknowledged with a silent nod. James was the only one to speak. 'Now they only need to figure out the second part of your name, Glaz.' The sniper shot him a serious look. 'Do you only have this one joke, or all that smoke got to your head already?' A few chuckled, but it was enough for the brit to stay quiet from then on.

'Alright', Vincente raised his sound slightly to catch everyone's attention. 'That monitoring van there will be designated HQ. I'd like Mute and Dokkaebi to join me there, and work on establishing any kind of connection with the people inside. IQ, Valkyrie, your task is to gain any intel you can from the building. I don't care what it is, but I don't want to send anyone in blind. Doc, set up a medical station by HQ, in case any hostages get released with injuries. Glaz, you and Caveira work with the police and try to get access to a vantage point, where you can keep a look out on the building. Your best bet might be an apartment on Mexico Street. After that help the girls get some intel. The rest of you are to be on standby until further instructions.'

And with that Team Rainbow began moving. Only four of them stayed by the van, the ones who did not yet receive any tasks.


Half an hour passed, and everybody was busy at work. Thermite, Kapkan, Smoke and Thatcher were kept up to date on how things were going, as all communication went through a shared channel. They did not speak however. All of them knew well that while they don't have anything to do, they must keep radio silence, so that people with information can communicate it quickly. All knew exactly how hard it was for Smoke to stay quiet.

The hijackers did not yet establish contact with HQ yet, which made Capitao very nervous. Bargaining was one of the most important parts of any hostage situation.

Glaz however found a suitable position for himself, in an apartment on Mexico Street, just as it was suggested to him. This way he had a clear view on the west side of the embassy. Caveira was already back, and she seemed to be working together with the Brazilian police to maintain perimeter.

Valkyrie and IQ achieved the most during the thirty minutes. Using electrical scanners, black-eye cameras, and drones they were able to gather the necessary intel. Ten floors out of the twelve story building looked to be empty. All hostages have been divided between the eleventh and twelfth floor. The hijackers were well equipped; however, they did not wear white masks, which made everyone feel a little easier. Just like they said, they also had equipment that looked like it can be either a bomb, or chemical weapon. IQ's sensors verified that they are live, and under electric charge.

Dokkaebi and Mute were unable to establish any kind of contact with the building.

'Rainbows, meet me at HQ! Except for you Glaz, naturally.' After receiving their order from Capitao, all operators gathered by the monitoring van. The Brazilian man stepped outside, while Dokkaebi and Mute were listening from the door.

'Let me summarize what we know. Eleven confirmed hostiles are currently in the building. This number can be higher. They wear biker masks, so we cannot confirm anything about them. They are speaking Portuguese, so there is a chance that they are locals. We could not identify a clear leader. There are twenty-two hostages, including the US Ambassador. We could also confirm that number based on official information we have.'

Capitao took a moment of break, then continued.

'Here comes the hard part. We could not establish connection with them, and they are not reaching out to us. Thus, we don't know what their motive is. But, the Ambassador and one hostage seems to be wounded, so we need to move in soon. They also have what is seems to be explosive devices, and cannisters attached to them that contain chemicals unknown to us. These can be well disguised fakes, or actual bombs. And so, I'm splitting the group into two. Doc will lead Team Orange. He's priority is to stabilize and rescue the Ambassador. He will be joined by Smoke and Mute. They are our best chances at disarming the unknown devices. Further Caveira is going to join them, as member of BOPE, and someone who knows the language. Lastly Kapkan and Valkyrie are also assigned to the team, to provide any support they might need. This will be the entry team. Glaz will provide support from outside, Dokkaebi will be responsible for monitoring in the van besides me. IQ will be providing drone support. Thermite and Thatcher will be backup.'

With that the teams, and roles were set. Thatcher and Thermite were somewhat disappointed that they will have nothing to do, but they didn't voice their complaint.

'Be ready to move in twenty!'


Twenty minutes later Team Orange was ready to move in.

'Good luck Rainbows!'

And so, the siege began. Dokkaebi and Capitao were staying in the monitoring van, listening to all communication, and keeping an eye on all the cameras that were either controlled by IQ, or placed by Valkyrie.

With the help of Glaz, Team Orange swept through the first ten floors without any hostile contact. They were now standing ready to breach the eleventh floor, where there was confirmed hostile movement, and hostages being held.

'Three…'

All Rainbows could hear the countdown through their radio.

'Two…'

IQ got ready to move in her drone to assist the team. Capitao and Dokkaebi did not have view on Orange, other than the drone, so they switched to its channel.

'One…'

Thermite and Thatcher look nervously at each other. Glaz steadied his aim and searched for any hostiles popping into his view.

'BREACH!'

The sound of exploding flashbangs could be heard outside, which were followed by gunfire. Windows were broken, and pieces of glass fell to the ground below. The radio was busy with callouts, status reports, and intel being shared. And just as fast as it started, it was over just as quickly.

The radio went silent, the gunfire stopped. And the drone went dark.

'Team Orange, report!' Thermite could hear the stress in Capiao's voice. No answer came, however.

'IQ, do you have visual?'

'Negative. I can't see anything. The drone is down.'

'Orange, do you copy?' Capitao's voice grew more nervous. His eyes were fixed on the black screen in front of Dokkaebi.

'Grace, do something about the feed! IQ, I'll need any kind of visual on Orange. Thermite, Thatcher, get ready! We have to…'

'HQ, I have visual on Smoke.'

'What do you see, Glaz?'

Then, just a few moments later a round of gunshots could be heard from the eleventh floor of the building.

The next time Glaz said anything, scared everyone on Team Rainbow. The always cool, and calculating sniper's voice was shaken, frightened even.

'HQ… Rainbows… Smoke just shot at me!'

*I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this fanfic. I would appreciate any kind of criticism, because if you tell me what I did wrong, I can improve it by the next chapter. Thank you!*