The op was simple: enter the house, eliminate all hostiles, and extract the hostage. Yet, everyone in the APC treated the mission with utmost importance. The team consisted of Thatcher, Hibana, Blitz, IQ, and Glaz, the latter not in the APC as he was setting up overwatch, leaving the rest of the team to idly wait as the APC neared the objective building. Thatcher was currently inspecting his EMPs, while Hibana did the same to her X-KAIROS launcher, both knowing that their equipment were essential to the mission. Blitz sat with IQ as he watched the German woman tinker with her Spectre. He always noticed the small things about her: the way her brows would furrow when focused, how here foot would tap when nervous, as it was doing now. He noticed all the things that made her so human, despite the cold demeanor she put up on a daily basis. He looked down at his handgun in thought, idly flicking the safety up and down, making audible clicks as it changed between safe and fire. His mind wandered to the first time he had seen Monika with her mask off, and compared her to an angel. Her blonde locks tied up in a messy ponytail, her face a perfect heart shape. But what caught him the most was her eyes. They looked like they were meant to cut diamonds, and could freeze even the ring of fire itself. He remembered how he stood there as Monika looked at him questioningly for staring at her, and how embarrassed he was to do so.
"You know, you shouldn't take your weapon off safe in the APC."
IQ's voice took Blitz out of his reverie as he met the German woman's gaze, her steel blue eyes were always his weakness.
"Don't worry, I'm perfectly responsible with firearms." as Blitz tried to give a reassuring smile under his mask
"Hmph" was the reply and as the conversation ended as quickly as it began.
"ETA 5 minutes ops, pack up and get ready. It's a perfect day to get things done."
The operators in the APC packed all their stuff, the sound of press checks and mag checks filled the vehicle and the op's checked their lifelines: their primary weapons. Blitz himself ejected the magazine from his handgun and inspected the 9mm rounds he had before popping it back in the gun and racking the slide, not forgetting to press check for a solid feed. His gun slid into his holster just as the APC stopped.
"You know what to do boys and girls, go make Six proud." came the intercom as Hibana opened the APC doors. The team spread out from the vehicle before Blitz gave the steel of the vehicle a quick double tap with his hand, signaling that it could leave.
"Alright." came the sound of the Russian sniper over the ground team's comms, "I see no OPFOR on your side of the building, move in."
Blitz led the push with IQ, Thatcher, and Hibana behind him, IQ on her sensor and Thatcher and Hibana checking corners. The group approached the house quietly and got ready to rappel onto the sides of the house. Four clicks of grapples were audible as the team scaled the side of the house onto a balcony
"Two nitro cells and two batteries charging this wall," IQ called out, her handgun in her freehand.
"Ok." came the Russian, "the target should be in the room next to the one right in front of you."
"Roger that," responded Blitz as he gave his helmet a soft rap with his knuckles to call up Thatcher and Hibana. The two moved up as Thatcher tossed an EMP against the wall, shorting out any electrical barriers, followed up with Hibana's launcher shooting 3 volleys of pellets onto the wall. Blitz gave one more rap to his helmet, signalling Hibana to detonate the charges as the Japanese woman brought out a flashbang. The hissing of the X-KAIROS pellets suddenly stopped as a massive hole opened up in the wall, which Hibana quickly threw a flashbang into.
"What the-" came a voice from inside as his and all other occupants of the room were blinded by the grenade as Blitz and IQ entered the room, Blitz crouching with his shield up acting as cover for IQ and her carbine. The room quickly filled with the sound of gunfire as 3 white masks were taken down.
"Clear!" shouted Blitz as Hibana and Thatcher entered the room with their guns up. The two began to sweep downstairs, leaving Blitz and IQ to take care of the hostage. The shield operator quickly got up and sprinted into the next room where the hostage was, followed by the rest of the ground team. The sound of sniper fire rang out as a white mask that was trying to climb stairs was taken down. As Blitz entered the next room, he flashed the occupants with his shield, while simultaneously pulling out his P12 and tapping them in the chest. One of the occupants who was smart enough to take cover returned fire, as Blitz was forced to go defensive and watch as bullets ricocheted off his shield. He looked behind him and saw IQ crouching right behind him, her eyes burning with determination. Aresounding click sounded in the room, signifying a bolt locking back on an empty mag, which prompted IQ to pop up and shoot the white mask in the face, a red mist spraying out the back of the terrorists head and leaving the wall looking like a monotone Jackson Pollock painting. The two shared no words as IQ moved ahead to retrieve the hostage. The two moved as a unit down the stairs as Hibana and Thatcher joined back up, the smell of gunpowder and explosives strong on their clothes. The four moved out with Blitz now taking the rear guard, Thatcher and Hibana taking point and IQ in the middle with the hostage. The main doors of the house opened as the team filed out towards the awaiting APC. Blitz had stayed at the main gate of the house to guard the rear as the rest of the team entered the armored vehicle. IQ looked back at Blitz to signal him to file in as the hostage was loaded when her eyes caught a small blinking light by the gate Blitz was approaching.
"Blitz! Careful of-" She began before being cut off.
"Watch out!" came the sound of Glaz."bomber on the steps!"
Blitz snapped to the door as a white mask loaded with explosives ran out the room. Glaz's sniper shot rang out, hitting the bomber, but detonated the fragile explosives in the process. The explosion also triggered the pack of C4 by the gate, catching Blitz square in the back. Blitz's eyes widened as the shrapnel and shockwave hit him like a truck. The shield op was sent flying as he hit the ground not too far from the APC, his shield landing not too far from him. IQ's eyes widened as she ran to the downed op, with Thatcher retrieving the shield.
"We have a man down, requesting medical assistance on arrival." Hibana ordered into a handset on the APC.
The shield op looked worse for wear as he was hefted into the truck. Thatcher quickly rapped the walls of the APC to signal the drivers as the APC roared to life away from the site. IQ quickly removed his headgear and mask to make it easier to breath, while using a knife to cut through the vest he had on, though there wasn't much vest anyways. IQ removed her headgear and pulled an IFAK from her person as she splayed out the contents and grabbing a roll of bandages and tourniquet to at least stop the bleeding coming from her teammates arm and legs.
"Come on Elias,don't die on me yet." grumbled the german woman as she dressed his wounds. The APC arrived at base not too long after, with EMT's and Doc at the front doors with a stretcher and stabilization equipment. The shield op was taken away from the rest of the team as they looked on.
"I hope he'll be ok, "came Hibana's voice, her hood down. Her face had concern written all over it as she fiddled with her plate carrier straps.
"Don't worry, he's a tough one. It'll take more than a fookin explosion to take 'im down." Came Thatcher's reply, though both women knew that he was concerned as well.
"It's my fault," said IQ, "I didn't see the nitro behind him, I should have taken it out…" Her voice trailed off as she looked at the ground in shame, her blonde locks hiding her face as her helmet and mask had long been ditched.
"No it's not, lass." Said Thatcher, "We didn't see it either, it was too well hidden. Don't bear yourself over it."
"Mm," was the only reply from the German woman as she went to the locker room to drop off her stuff. Hibana looked at Thatcher before going after IQ, no words needed to be said about what to do.
'Elias could be paralyzed, or worse, and it's because of me. I should have noticed, I should have been more aware.' Thought IQ to herself as she went through her unpacking process robotically. She ejected the magazine to her 552 and racked the charging handle to clear it before reloading the bullet into the magazine and stowing both items in there locker, her handgun came next, the same process happening. She then looked at her wrist, her Spectre, the thing that made her special in the ranks of Rainbow, the device that should have saved Blitz from that devastating injury. She stared at it for a long while before a drop of liquid hit the screen. Monika blinked her eyes as she realized she was crying, her other hand coming up to cover her mouth in an attempt to stifle the pitiful sounds. She sank to the ground as her eyes shut tightly, small sobs racking her chest as she leaned against the cold wall of the locker room. Monika then felt a warm embrace around her, as her eyes snapped open in an attempt to shake off whatever foreign feeling was on her.
"Shh, it's just me" came the voice of Yumiko. The softness of the voice only compounded the crying as she turned to cry into the other woman's chest. Yumiko just sat there and stroked Monika's back in an attempt to soothe her.
"Why...I-I…" Monika choked out, "I c-couldn't stop it."
"It's not your fault Weiss-san. Be rest assured that Elias is a tough man, he will survive."
The two stayed like that for a while until the blonde stopped crying and got up.
"Thank you Yumiko, I'm sorry I took so much of your time."
"Don't worry Weiss-san, I am your friend." Yumiko responded with a smile. "Are you going to be ok?"
"I think so, yeah." Came the response. Yumiko left to go to her locker and organize her things as Monika went to the shower room.
Finished with her nightly routine, Monika walked to her room, which was currently empty as her roommates Eliza and Emma were out on their own sorties. The German woman snuggled into her bed and blankets and shut her eyes. Sleep eluded her that night as thoughts of her German teammate plagued her mind. Elias was always there for her, no matter what. From Dominic's pranks to criticisms of her work, the shield user was always supportive of her. She remembered the night when her Spectre shorted out due to heavy rain, rendering her helpless against the things that she was meant to counter. She felt so helpless that day, even knowing that her firearms training was more than adequate for the mission. But it was Elias who stepped up in her place and was extra careful and sharp on that mission, taking point in case of explosives and overall operated on a whole other level that day. When Monika attempted to apologize for her tech error, the man simply laughed and waved it off, stating that she would do the exact same for him if need be. His smile disarmed her, his demeanor put her at ease, but worst of all, his presence made her so, so happy. Monika curled tighter into a ball on her bed as she let fond memories of her friend flood her mind, as she wondered if she thought of him as more than her friend. She fell asleep that day thinking about her blonde companion.
(2 weeks later)
Monika walked down to the mess hall and got her usual food. As she left the line, she looked up to see her friends Yumiko, Eliza, Emma, and Tina sitting at a table, waving at her. Monika perked up a little and headed to sit with them.
"Hey guys." Monika started.
"Don't hey guys us." came Eliza with a pout, " Yumiko filled us in on what happened, are you ok?"
Monika shot the Japanese woman a dirty look before responding.
"Yeah, I'm ok. Don't worry about me, guys."
"I'm no expert, but I think you're lying" came the response from Tina, "By Yumiko's description of the event, you were really torn up about Elias."
"Well, I just don't know. Elias is a good friend of mine. Of course I would be torn up about him being hurt." Monika replied.
"Monika please. I've seen the way you look at him," Emma started, "the way you catch glimpses of him during briefings, the way you always as if he's alright after the mission. There are more but I'll save you the trouble: I think you like him." The drone specialist finished off with a smirk, as the rest of the girls looked at Monika with burning curiosity. The German woman's face lit up like a stoplight.
"I absolutely do not!" said Monika, a little too loud as some of the mess hall occupants looked towards her, which caused her to blush more. "I just appreciate what he does for he and I want to make sure he knows it."
"Sounds like you like him to me Weiss-san." deduced Yumiko.
It was then that Gustave, Rainbow's resident doctor, came to the table.
"Excuse me Miss Weiss, I'm here to inform you that your teammate has recovered enough to receive visitors. If you would like to see him, he is there now."
The Frenchman walked away leaving all the girls to watch Monika stare at the retreating doctor.
"What are you do, Monika. Go and check on your 'partner.'" teased Emma
"S-Shut up!" Came a flustered Monika as she quickly stood up to visit her friend.
"She definitely likes him." Eliza said, a statement to which all the girls at the table agreed with.
As Monika approached the medical wing, she saw Dominic exit the doors.
"Is he alright?" Asked Monika.
"Ja, he's alright. Four hallways down, first door on your right." Came the response
"Thanks, Dom." As the two parted ways.
The German woman followed her friends directions and arrived at the door. She reached out to grab the handle but stopped before making contact, her hand shaking a bit. Doubt clouded her mind as thoughts of that day came back like a hurricane. She stood there for a long while, her hands down at her sides, looking at the door handle as if it was the most complicated puzzle on Earth.
"You know, all you have to do is turn the handle, Ja?" came a voice from inside, the sound of which knocked her out of her stupor as she opened the door and made her way in.
"I know that, I just-" her voice failed her as she froze in sight of her teammate. Both of his legs were wrapped up in white, same with his left arm and midsection. There was an IV on his uninjured arm and a bandage going around his head, a faint stain of red on it.
"You look like you've seen a ghost." Elias responded, giving the German woman a small smile. Monika slowly stepped towards her teammate and sat on the chair next to his bed. Her hand coming up to grasp Elias' uninjured hand with the utmost tenderness.
"'This...this is my fault. I didn't take out the nitro in front of you. If I saw that damned cell in time you would be better already." The woman said.
"No this isn't, Monika." said Elias, his thumb making small circles on the back of Monika's hand, "I missed it too. And besides, It'll take a lot more to put me down. You know that the best."
The statement caused a small smile to grace the blonde woman's face, something that made her look so angelic to Elias. But that smile was fleeting as Monika tried to blink away unshed tears. The woman looked away and tried to wipe away the urge to cry with her free arm, to no avail.
"Monika…"
"I thought I lost you, Elias. I thought that one of my closest people was gone. I-I hate you for making m-me feel like this, you know. I-I…" Her words couldn't leave her mouth as she choked up with fresh tears. Elias slipped his hand out of hers and went to caress his fellow blonds face, trying his best to wipe away the rapidly multiplying tears. He guided her head to his chest and made sure that her ear was to his heart.
"You hear that, Monika. I'm here, I'm still with you. You don't have to worry about it."
The woman responded by trying her best to wrap her arms around his torso, holding on as tight as she could to ensure that he couldn't leave her again, her tears staining the patients garb Elias had on. The shield op began to run his fingers through her golden locks to comfort her as she rode out the rest of her sobs.
"There there, you know I hate seeing you cry." Tried Elias.
It was a while before Monika stopped crying, her head rising to face Elia's concerned one with her own tear stained one. His hand came up to wipe the tear tracks away, a motion that the German woman took great comfort in.
"Why do you make me feel this way Elias?" whispered Monika, as she looked into his deep blue eyes
"Why do you do the same to me?" whispered Elias as he too lost himself in his partners eyes. "Do you know how hard it is to resist you, my dear? Everything about you captivates me: the way you prep for a mission the exact same way every time, the say you smile after destroying electronics, the way you laugh so melodically. You make me feel like a schoolboy fawning over his first love again."
Monika looked at her partner with wide eyes, waiting for a but or something to destroy her hopes.
"You are my world, Monika. This ordeal I find myself in and the pain, I would endure it all again and again if it meant protecting you."
His words shook the woman's core, as she felt her heartstrings being played like a violinist plays his instrument. She slowly brought her hands to her teammate's face and framed it gently.
"Then show me," whispered Monika, "Show me what I mean to you."
Elias just smiled as he brought her lips down to meet his as explosions erupted in both of them. They both had no experience in kissing but it didn't matter as they realized their connection went so much further than friends. As they separated a nurse quickly entered the room, causing the two ops to jump away from each other.
"I saw an elevated heart rate coming from him, turns out he's fine." the nurse said with a smile as she left and closed the door.
The two GSG 9 ops looked at each other with faces that would rival stop signs as they started to chuckle.
"That ruined the moment, don't you agree?" offered Elias.
"Most certainly it did." replied Monika.
The woman then wrapped her arms around the larger man once again and placed her ear on his heart, relaxing at its steady beat. Elias simply ran his fingers through her hair, taking comfort at the softness and warmth.
"Stay for a while."
"I don't intend on leaving, not again."