New chapter! It's a lot longer than the first, and hopefully not too boring. It's also from the perspective of the other parties involved (Swain/Bomber/Spider/Buffer/ET). Let me know what you think!
Key Island, Forenoon Watch: 1115
"Come on, Bomber," says Swain, motioning her forward. They make their way back to the RHIB, and then head off into the jungle. The humidity is stifling, a warm blanket against their skin. Swain has no problem following the trail they've trampled. After all, grace and leave-no-trace aren't exactly Spider's strong suits.
"Spider! Spider!" yells Bomber, keeping alert. Her red-brown bob swings against her jaw line, sticking to her neck in the tropical heat. She holds her Browning out in front her, finger poised close to the trigger.
"Bomb, is that you?" Spider's voice is weak and tight with pain. "I'm over here!" A hand waves in the air a few hundred meters away.
Bomber takes off towards him, jumping over a fallen tree, and dodging low-hanging branches. She kneels next to him, checking his head and face. "Spider, what happened?"
His eyes squeeze shut. "They came out of nowhere. They knocked me out and they – they…" his voice falters and he trails off. Bomber drives her finger into his arm, the pang of worry turning into a gut wrenching unease. "They took the X. I didn't see where, because they hit me with something."
"How many were there?" asks Bomber quickly.
He winces. "Three, I think. One knocked me out and two got the X. I think they went that way." He points down the path.
Swain grasps the headset and speaks quickly into it. "X-ray 82, this is Sierra 82. Come in X-ray 82." Static crackles at the other end. "Come in X-ray 82, come in X-ray 82. Over." He adjusts the radio even though he knows it won't do any good. "X-ray 82, radio check." Nothing. He rubs his forehead and then heads over to Spider, gently prying the younger sailor's foot loose. Spider squirms in pain, forehead dewing with sweat.
"We have to get him back to the RHIB," says Bomber. "We can't just leave him here. What if they come back?"
"I know, Bomber," Swain agrees. "Just a second." He speaks into his radio again, "Come in Papa 82, over."
"Swain, what's going on? I can't raise either Spider or the X," comes ET's voice, slightly garbled from the distance.
"We're taking Spider back to the RHIB. Spider says there are at least three armed people on the island, and they have the X. We don't know where they've taken her. Meet back at the RHIB immediately, over," explains Swain, helping Bomber to get Spider upright. The two set him on his feet and turn to head back to the RHIB. Swain drops his Hammersley cap onto the path to mark it, and he and Bomber support Spider back to the RHIB.
"Swain's placed his cap to mark the place," Bomber says as the three head off.
The journey back to the RHIB takes over twice as long as it took them to find Spider. Bomber wishes she could do something for Spider, but she has to keep his boot on to keep the swelling in check. They help him get into the RHIB, as Swain goes about the unsavoury task of radioing Mike and explaining that they 'lost' Kate.
Leaning against the side of the RHIB, Swain pulls at his collar. Bomber sees the patch of sweat on his grey t-shirt. He takes in a deep, calming breath, steeling himself. "Charlie 82, this is Sierra 82, come in, over."
"Sierra 82, this is Charlie 82, come in," Mike responds immediately. "Did you find the drugs?"
Swain exhales slowly. "No boss. About that… Spider has a badly sprained ankle. I suspect partially torn ligaments, or a grade II sprain. And the X – we lost her."
"What do you mean, you 'lost' her?" asks Mike, voice low and dangerous.
"They grabbed her at gunpoint and knocked Spider out. When he came to, she was gone," Swain explains, shifting from side to side slowly. He braces himself for the explosion.
"Right, I'm coming over there. I'll see you in about thirty minutes," Mike says, "over." His end goes dead and Swain releases his death grip on the side of the RHIB.
"Over here!" Bomber waves as ET and Buffer tumble out of the jungle.
ET could definitely admire the construction of the sea caves if they weren't on a tight deadline. He and Buffer duck into each and every cave, pistols drawn and on high alert. They find nothing, and get only sand in their combat boots for their efforts.
"X-ray 82, this is Papa 82, come in, over," says Buffer, wanting an update from Kate. Static snaps in his ear. "X-ray 82, come in over. Radio check." Nothing.
"Papa 82, this is Sierra 82, come in, over." ET almost trips over himself in his haste to respond, "Sierra 82, this is Papa 82. Swain, what's going on? I can't raise either Spider or the X." ET kicks the sand, sending it flying in their faces.
"Right, we're on our way, over." Buffer turns to ET. "Let's go!" The two take off, cutting through the jungle as fast as they can. They're breathing hard by the time they spill out of the jungle to the other beach. It's a relief to see Swain, Bomber, and Spider.
Hammersley, Forenoon Watch: 1139
Mike knows that the Hammersley is just over the horizon from Key Island. He wishes Charge could use the EOD to track the party's progress there, but it's too far away. He taps his fingers impatiently against the edge of the console, and stares out at the empty ocean. With just over an hour until the tide goes out to its fullest, he knows time is of the essence.
"Sir." Nav come up behind him and places a hand gently on his arm.
"Yes, Nav?" Mike turns his head to look at the young woman, who smiles up at him.
"Just because they haven't radioed yet doesn't mean anything bad, you know," she advises, turning back to the radar screen, searching for contacts. It remains blank.
"Charlie 82, this is Sierra 82, come in, over." Swain's voice fills the bridge, and Mike jumps up and grabs the radio as fast as he can.
"Sierra 82, this is Charlie 82, come in," he responds. "Did you find the drugs?" He crosses his fingers in his lap. The tide turned 20 minutes ago, and he's starting to feel anxious. If the drugs are in the caves, which he has every reason to suspect they are, time is running out. He hears Swain's exhale crackle through the radio, and tenses automatically. That can't mean anything good.
"No boss. About that… Spider has a badly sprained ankle. I suspect partially torn ligaments, or a grade II sprain. And the X – we lost her."
Mike's breath catches in his throat and sweat sprouts on his temples. He reaches forward to rub the bridge of his nose. "What do you mean, you 'lost' her?"
"They grabbed her at gunpoint and knocked Spider out. When he came to, she was gone," Swain explains.
Mike makes a snap decision. He's going over there. He has to rescue Kate. "Right, I'm coming over there. I'll see you in about thirty minutes," he says, "over." He slams the radio back and turns around. "Charge, RO, with me. Now!"
Five minutes later, the three are sitting in the other RHIB in full Kevlar, ready to go. Mike taps his foot impatiently against the bottom of the RHIB as Charge guns the engine and they roar off towards Key Island.
As soon as the RHIB gets close enough, Mike leaps out of it. He lands, water soaking through his boots, and runs up the beach to where Bomber, Swain, ET, Buffer and Spider are clustered.
"RO, you'll take Spider back to the ship. The rest of us are going to find the XO. Charge, with me. Swain, ET, search the other side of the island. Buffer, Bomber, search inland," he instructs. He and Charge turn and head along the what's left of the beach. The tide has swallowed the majority of the sand. They duck into the caves, shining their flashlights in. The beams scour the darkest crevices, but all are empty.
"X! X are you here?" Mike yells, voice becoming hoarse. The tide is lapping at their ankles, each wave inching up the shoreline. Panic is fluttering in Mike's stomach, and there's a bitter taste in his mouth. The sand squishes under his boots, and he moves forward numbly.
Swain and ET round the northern point of the island, discovering a small, secluded beach. On the other side, there's a small pile of brush, slightly past the high-tide mark. To a passerby, it might resemble dropped leaves, but to Swain and ET, it's a badly concealed tender.
"Look! There!" Swain points down the beach, signaling to ET. The two take off on a sprint down the beach, sand flying under their feet. They reach the tender a few minutes later. They quickly strip off the leaves and bracken, but there's nothing to identify it, just some fishing line and tackle stowed carelessly in the bottom. Shouting voices drift down from the woods.
"Quickly, over here," Swain says in a hushed voice, gesturing to ET, who's still squatting by the tender, fiddling with it. "As far as we know there's no evidence of drugs. They could be just fishermen."
"Yeah right." ET's voice is strained as he reaches up. He quickly bolts up and recovers the tender. Swain watches, arms folded, impatient.
"Come on, ET," he says.
ET brushes the sand and leaf bits off his hands. He and Swain hurry down the beach, looking around frantically for cover. They duck behind a boulder, and watch as two men stumble down the path, trying to navigate the rocks without tripping. Swain scans them for drugs, but sees nothing.
"Charlie 82, this is Sierra 82, come in over," he says softly into his mic. "This is Swain. We have a contact on this side of the island. No evidence of drugs, they could be just fishermen, but I doubt it. We're too far out." He looks to ET for the coordinates, and relays them to Mike.
"We're going to stay here until we can get away without them seeing us," adds ET. "Then we'll follow them and see what we can find out. Any sign of the X?"
"Sounds like a plan. Keep me updated," says Mike, voice terse. "No sign of her yet, but we're searching."
"Right., over." Swain snaps off his radio, and props himself up to see over the boulder. The two men are heading to the other side of the island, away from Mike and Charge.
"Let's move," says ET, standing and moving close to the ground, Swain following him. They move up into the jungle and follow from there, rounding the promontory on the north side of the island. When the beach spreads out in front of them, the two men are gone.
"Where did they go?" asks ET. "We didn't compromise our position, did we?"
Swain shakes his head. "No, we didn't, I don't think." He frowns, brows puckering as he considers it. "No, I'm sure we didn't."
ET shrugs. "Might as well wait here and see if they reappear." He switches on his radio, positions it closer to his mouth, and speaks into it, "Charlie 82, this is Sierra 82, come in, over."
"Sierra 82, what's happening?" asks Charge.
"We lost our contacts," says ET, face dimming. "We rounded the point and they were gone."
"Dammit!" Charge says. "I'll tell the boss." There's a silence, and then his voice distantly repeats the information to Mike. Swain hears the CO swear loudly and closes his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Sierra 82, Charge just informed me of the situation. Hold your position; let me know of any changes. No sign of the X, over."
Swain sighs and sits back on his heels. "I guess we're in for a bit of a wait, then. Keep your eyes peeled," he says. He gazes out to sea for a minute, and there's a flash of panic as he realizes how much the tide has come in. The beach is shrinking rapidly. He looks up to the brilliant blue sky and says a small prayer for the X. Time is running out fast.