The jeeps screeched to a halt and everyone filled out. A dozen feet pounded the blacktop and the roaring of heavy engines became distant. This was it.
"Remember, team, the White Masks are coming to secure that container. Don't let them at it." Thatcher's voice cut out over my headset. On this mission were Rook, Jager, Lesion, Echo, and I, Valkyrie. We got to the room where the high-value container lay. I got right to work, placing my cameras in strategic spots inside the Spanish clubhouse. There were three on the main floor and three more on the second where the container was held. I returned to the room and Julien handed me an armor plate.
"Suit up, Ms. Castellano. Wouldn't want you ending up like Maxim."
His bland attempt at humor cut deeper than intended. I scowled silently and strapped the plates around my chest. Echo relaxed on a nearby couch while twirling his machine pistol.
"Someone wake me up when they come," he chuckled.
Jager laughed as he watched outside through a crack in the barricaded window.
"You better be ready, boy," said Lesion. He checked a reinforcement.
"Ah, you Chinese need to learn from your neighbors. Loosen up a little, yeah? Let your blood flow freely. Maybe take a few deep breaths to get your panties out of that bunch."
Lesion scoffed with annoyance. "I'm surprised Six won't let me shoot you already."
Echo simply laughed at his remark. "You know, I'm thinking we should all go out for drinks afterward. I heard that we're staying the night here and Ryad was telling me all about the Spanish nightlife. Said there were as many drinks as there are gir-"
"Will you just shut up?" snapped Lesion.
"Sorry." I smiled as his voice dripped with sarcasm. Echo and Blitz were always there to lighten up the mood. That's what I enjoyed so much about them. No matter the situation, I could always count on some dry joke or sarcastic remark to make me chuckle.
My mood went from cheery to solemn as I remembered Maxim. I don't know why I wanted him to leave last night and I feel horrible for it. He never got an explanation and probably thinks that he pissed me off somehow. I would definitely have to make it up to him when I got back. I sighed and leaned back against the wall.
"Something wrong?"
I glanced over to Echo who seemed too comfortable on the plush couch. "No," I responded blandly.
"You're not very convincing," I said nothing. "Come on, they don't call me the Love Doctor for nothing."
"Who the fuck calls you the Love Doctor," laughed Jager.
"Hush, brother. Do you not see that I'm with a client right now?"
"You're crazy," the German mumbled.
"So tell me, Meghan. What's on your mind."
For a second I actually thought of telling him everything that I've kept secret even from myself. But before I could open my mouth, Jager turned on his mic.
"Enemies approaching from the ruins. Get into position and get ready pull that trigger." He dashed out of the room to hide out in the kitchen. He and Lesion would be out in the building, killing lone terrorists and giving information while Rook, Echo, and I would be hunkering down in the room. I set the safety to "off" and loaded a bullet into the chamber of my MPX. Echo laid behind cover and operated his drone.
His voice came over the headset. "I don't know about the rest of you but I might take a nap back here."
I checked the cameras with my phone. "There are two groups entering. Both have a shield and four others. One's already breached the bar and the other is breaching into the second-floor bedroom."
"I hear them right outside the kitchen, Meghan," Jager said. "Tell me when they're all on the stairs and I'll come from behind."
I watched carefully as the loud band of terrorists checked their corners and stepped on the staircase. A gunshot rang out and my feed went black. "Shit, they must've seen my cam. You'll just have to use your best judgment." There was no reply. A second later, a storm of bullets erupted down the hallway and I could hear the cries of dying men.
"That's one group down."
"JÓ“ger," said Lesion, "Get over here. They have me pinned and-" His mic went silent as an explosion went off somewhere in the building. More gunshots filled the halls.
"I'm going to go help them," I said.
Rook glanced over at me and grimaced. "Be careful."
I nodded and ran out to the fight. My gun was aimed and I tried my best to walk quietly. Grey clothes came in front of my reticle and my finger clamped the trigger. The recoil shook my hands violently and the hail of bullets sounded like thunder through my headphones. Five bodies lay on the tile floor. Dozens of bleeding holes covered each corpse and red pools grew underneath them. Jager stood up.
"Thank you, though I could have done it myself."
"Don't worry about it." I depressed the mag release and the empty magazine clattered on the floor. I replaced it and walked over to Jager who was kneeling over Lesion.
"He was knocked out by a breaching charge. Let's get him back to the others."
"Whatever you guys are doing down there, you better hurry the hell up." It was Rook. "I'm seeing more Mask's coming from the north side."
"We'll be there in a second," I responded. Jager threw one of Lesion's arms over his shoulder and I took the other. We went as we could but I could already hear the incoming terrorists. The window to my left exploded in an erupted of shattered glass and splinters. I drew my pistol as a terrorist rappeled in. With a bang, he was thrown against the wall with a smoking hole in his chest. "Let's go!" I commanded. We entered the room and dropped Lesion's limp body on a couch and I immediately went to barricade the door we had come in through.
Rook unloaded bullets and the pound of Echo's drone blasted in the hallway. White Mask's were coming in every direction. I emptied magazines until my arms hurt.
Finally, it looked as if the threat had died down. I was speckled in blood and the barrel of my gun smoked. Rook let out a sigh of relief and put in a fresh magazine. "Well done, friends," he said.
"I never liked killing people but I won't disagree," Jager said.
Echo stood up and stretched. "Does this mean I can go home now?"
Rook smirked and laughed.
"Guys," I said as I saw a moving blue light coming up the stairs. "We're not done yet."
They all saw the juggernaut with bombs strapped to his chest hulk his way toward us. Heavy bullets cut the air when they ripped from his machine gun.
"Fuck!" Everyone ducked behind cover and returned fire. I don't know how many shots I put into the bomber but he kept coming. "This isn't working," Echo yelled.
I watched as Rook then dropped his gun, snatched a shield from a dead terrorist, and let out a savage war cry. He charged the enemy and slammed directly into him with brute force. The bomber was thrown back but the light switched from blue to red and a fiery explosion ignited the air and sent Rook flying back toward us. He collided with a table and slumped over. The shield clattered against the ground next to him. For a moment, the whole world stood still.
A crackle from the radio broke the silence. "Everything going alright down there?"
Jager switched on his mic. "No, Lesion is unconscious and Rook is out as well. We don't know what state he's in just that he's not moving."
Nothing came for a few seconds. The silence broke again. "Hang tight. There are a few more tangos approaching the building but we'll take care of them. Just get ready to wheel that container outside and get your asses in the chopper."
I holster my weapons and threw Lesion over my shoulders. Echo took Rook and Jager grabbed the container. Above, I heard the thunder of the helicopter and the rattling of the mounted machine guns.
"As soon as that rope ladder comes down, we run," said Jager. The spinning blades threw heavy gusts of wind and my hair blew all about as we dashed out onto the second level porch. "Get them up there first!" he yelled over the helicopter.
Echo set down Julien and helped secure Lesion to me. I grasped the ladder and began the vertical climb. The extra weight on my shoulders was extraordinary but I forced myself to keep going. With one last rung left, A hand reached out and pulled us up into the chopper. Echo wasn't far behind. We had the two unconscious operators loaded up, all that was left was the container. Jager frantically connected buckles and tightened straps. I skipped towards the open door and glanced down at him.
"Meghan," a voice said. I turned to see Sledge who was the one who helped me up. "Get away from the edge."
"I'm going to go help him. Keep watch while I'm away." I grinned smugly as he gave me a defeated look. He knew he couldn't keep me from going down. My hands grabbed the side of the steel door and I slid down the ladder. Hard shock shot up my legs when I hit the ground faster than intended.
"Glad you could make it," Jager said.
"What else needs to be secured?"
"The straps on the back side are a mess."
I moved next to him and started untangling thick straps. The pressure from the wind punched my eardrums in a steady rhythm.
"Hurry it up!" called the pilot. "More signatures coming from the west."
"Got It!" I yelled. "Reel her up." We helped push the steel container up while the crew onboard pulled. "I got this. Go up and help pull."
Jager turned his head to me but I couldn't see his face behind the mask. Without a word, he ascended up the ladder and was too pulling the container up. Gunshots were muffled by the helicopter's engine. I swear I felt something burning along the inside of my calf but I kept pushing. Finally, the container was high enough so I grabbed onto the ladder.
"Alright, we're leaving!" the pilot yelled. I was instantly lifted from the ground, still clutching onto the hanging ladder. The ground became smaller and smaller beneath my feet and eventually turned to black water. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as the cool wind blew through my hair. Echo looked over the side.
"You coming up anytime soon?"
I smirked and grabbed his hand. He pulled me up and I sat next to him only to fall asleep during the calming ride home.
-I appreciate all the positive feedback so far and am having quite a bit of fun making this story. I have more ideas to continue the story that I'm sure you will all enjoy