Chapter 25

There's a simplicity to war. Attacking is the only secret. Dare, and the world yields. How quickly they forget that all it takes to change the course of history is the will of a single man.

Price checked his gear and made sure it was ready to go. This was it. They found him.

Who it this?

Prisoner 6-2-7. I'm coming for you, Makarov.

They found him and Price was going to get him. He was going to kill the bastard for all the pain and suffering. But first he would really make the bastard suffer.

Haven't you heard, Price? They say the war is over.

My war ends with you.

It would only end once Makarov was dead. His only regret was that it didn't come soon enough. That and that he hadn't done enough to find her.

Like it ended for Captain MacTavish? Tell me Price, how long did it take him to die? I've destroyed your world piece by piece. I have my Anya. It's only a matter of time until I find you.

Not if I find you first.

"You sure this armor will protect us?"

Price looked at Yuri as he was drawn out of his thoughts. He looked at the man who was revealed to have known Makarov and yet he had proved that he was on his side and dedicated to killing Makarov. Vaguely he considered also that the man had something in common with him. "It'll buy us time," he said. He checked his comm, "Nikolai, have you patched into their systems."

Working on it. I'm not as good as little Nico. I'm a little rusty.

"Keep working on it and you'll have a chance to brush up on it," Price replied. Now that they knew where Makarov was, there was a good chance that Nicolette was there with him.

"Looks like they know we're here," Yuri said amidst the sound of gunfire. He looked at Price knowing what was on the man's mind.

I've tapped into their security feed. Makarov's in the atrium on the top floor. Price… he has Nico with him.

Price looked at Yuri. He said, "This is it. Makarov doesn't leave here alive. Yuri, if you get a chance… get Nico out of there. Get her out."

Yuri nodded as he put on this helmet. This was the first they heard of Makarov and he knew the man wouldn't go too far without her. He would help Price get her out. There was a lot to be atoned for here. And he would start by getting the little bird safe. He waited until Price gave the word and he opened the door of their vehicle.

Immediately they were overwhelmed with gunfire. Price open fired and gunned down the first way. "We've got their attention. Second wave of responders will be coming any moment."

Yuri led the way to the entrance of the hotel. The benefit of the armor was that it packed a punch when he elbowed one of Makarov's men and then emptied half a clip into him. The downside was that he couldn't move as fast as he would like. It was a tradeoff especially when you were basically on a suicide mission to kill the man you hated and rescuing the woman that you cared about.

"Right on schedule. Aim for the cars."

Makarov's got a small army in there!

"It won't help him. Take control of the lifts so he can't escape."

I've got that Captain Price. Nikolai gave me access. Locking down the lifts.

"RPGs! Second floor!"

Price looked up and spotted the RPG gunners. He raised his rifle and commenced firing. Makarov may have been the target but all associated persons were expendable as well. If they surrendered or threw down their weapons and ran… he would let them go. He turned and spotted some civilians, "Yuri, civilians coming out. Watch your fire! Nikolai, where's Makarov?"

Still in the atrium, but he's on the move. Two signals still and they are moving.

"Don't lose him! We're almost there!"

"Hostiles by the escalator!"

Price stopped to reload since he was empty. He could hear the alarms raging since the gunfire broke anything that was breakable and there were discernable bullet holes in the walls. That didn't matter as Price followed Yuri up the escalator as he finished loading. He had his gun up to cover just as they reached the second floor. "Nikolai, we need control of those lifts!"

Standby, Captain Price. Done. I have control of the elevators. Sending them to your floor.

Nice work Addy.

Price finished off another of Makarov's men and pushed forward. "The lift's ahead!"

They still had a group of Makarov's men to gun down and they took that with ease. Price had to marvel at the rate Yuri was pushing through and kept passing Price to take point. The man had proven himself and lifted himself back up after being seriously injured from the RPG in the diamond mine. The man bought himself some time with his story and now…

They got into the elevator and reloaded their guns. Price checked his ammo to make sure that he had what he needed. Yuri did the same.

Makarov's moved to the restaurant, same floor. He has a large security detail with him.

"What kind of opposition is waiting for us?" Price shifted on is feet.

Forty plus foot mobiles! SMGs and Assault Rifles.

Captain Price, enemy chopper closing on your position.

Price looked out the glass window of the elevator. "One is heading for the roof. Probably going for Makarov."

He was right and one headed for the roof. The other pointed right at them and started firing at them. Price lifted his weapon and shouted, "Shoot it down!"

They managed to take it out but the chopper crashed into the building and where their elevator was. It was hard enough to jolt them off their feet. Yuri braced himself but wasn't prepared for the damage done to his armor. He didn't expect the flames as the engulfed them. He struggled to put it out and yanked off the helmet. "Price! Our armor is shredded." He started yanking of Price's armor and checking to make sure the man was still functioning.

Price opened his eyes to find that Yuri had stripped him of the armor and was giving him a hand up. He coughed from the smoke and call, "Addy, we're gonna need another lift!"

Copy that. I have another en route.

The elevator came up at the same time the lift Price and Yuri were in started to shudder. The car wasn't going to last much longer. Yuri wasted no time and used his gun to break the glass. He jumped over and waited for Price. "Jump, Price!"

Price leapt and grabbed the edge just as the car began to fall. He managed to haul himself in, briefly remembering when MacTavish had been in the same position as his FNG. It was funny how things could remind you of the past. He got to his feet and checked his weapons as the car started and continued their ascent to the top floor.

Makarov's chopper just touched down. He's heading there now! Nico is with him.

Yuri slammed the cartridge hard into his gun and locked and loaded. "He's not getting away."

Captain Price, Makarov's men are setting up barricades. Be careful.

That didn't seem to matter to Yuri as Price observed when the man through a frag grenade out and followed it. It was danger close for Yuri when it went off. Price called, "Watch yourself, Yuri! Your armor is gone!"

Multiple threats to your right.

Yuri was on point and led the way. He was determined to capture Makarov and rescue Nicolette. He had a promise to keep to MacTavish. He promised to find her and make sure that she was safe. He did not let her go and watch her back just to have it be for nothing. "Keep pressing," he shouted, "We've almost got him!"

They pushed forward against the waves of men that Makarov had barricaded between them and his way of escape. Price popped out a few grenades to thin their numbers. It helped as Yuri mopped up with his gun and they continued to push forward.

You're almost at the restaurant.

"Restaurant is this way," Yuri pointed out.

He's still there! You've almost got him!

They made it to the restaurant and for a moment it was quiet. Price rounded the corner and spotted the man and he was holding fast to none other than Nicolette. He pointed out to Yuri, "There he is!"

They were immediately open fired upon. Yuri tried to push towards Makarov as he saw the man grab her by the upper arms. She seemed to struggle but she more or less kind of fell as he pulled her. Yuri knew though she got a good look at them. He and Price were out in the open. She wouldn't mistake them.

"Watch out for that chopper!"

Yuri glanced and saw the chopper. It was loaded with rockets and he called out the warning. It was too late as the chopper fired off the rockets on their floor. It fired in a succession. Yuri shielded his face to protect it from debris but the floor gave way and started to tilt. He fell and felt a throbbing pain as he landed.

Price fell to his knees the moment the floor started to tilt and he slid forward. He would have gone out the window and to his death if he hadn't grabbed the rod support or whatever it was. He slowly hauled himself up and saw Yuri on his back and groaning in pain and a large piece of debris sticking out of him. "Yuri…"

"Leave me. Don't let him get away. Save… Nico," Yuri grunted. He waved Price onward. "Go!"

Makarov is heading for the roof.

Price didn't want to but he knew that to ignore Yuri's request would mean losing that bastard and also losing Nicolette. She had seen them and that meant she would fight back but that would spell trouble for her. He would not let her be subject to that bastard's machinations. He started heading upwards towards the roof. He climbed over the debris and upwards.

He's dead ahead. Keep running! He's going for the chopper! Run!

Price saw the chopper starting to take off. He saw Makarov and it looked like he was struggling with Nicolette. Bloody muppet decided to fight now. He sprinted towards the chopper. He wasn't going to let it get away. He was going to bring it down.

Nicolette normally didn't like being manhandled. She would have struggled against it and even got in a punch and a kick if she could. She didn't resist overly much when Makarov grabbed her upper arm and dragged her out of the atrium and into the restaurant at the top of the hotel. She didn't even resist when he dragged her from her room. When she saw Price and Yuri… that changed.

She didn't see MacTavish and wondered what happened but seeing Price and Yuri… it was enough. She began to struggle once she realized they were the ones that had stormed the castle. They were the ones that she saw through the window.

She didn't have much luck. It was the price she paid for her reduced appetite. She wasn't as strong and Makarov had the advantage by grabbing her in a position that was beneficial to him. She managed to get out a slight squeal of a grunt while trying to swing at the man. She ended up getting slammed into the wall on her shoulder mostly when the chopper fired on the floor. She screamed out for Price and Yuri but it was like she lost her voice as she was hauled to the roof.

"Now you start to fight, Anya?"

Makarov's voice was in her ear and she struggled harder but she was roughly turned around and for the first time in three months, he backhanded her and had. It had her spinning but his grip roughly kept her from falling. She couldn't help but grunt as she was roughly shoved into the chopper. She was going to try something when Makarov roughly grabbed her by her hair and yanked her back to slam it back against the wall while he barked out in Russian to get the chopper into the air.

Nicolette saw stars from being slammed like that. Her head was moved so she faced Makarov and he said, "This will be the end. No more, Anya."

Nicolette didn't say anything. She actually felt afraid. The look Makarov was giving her told her that he was not going to pull any more punches. Then the fear turned into determination to be defiant. She would fight him if she had to. She looked at the man as her breath came in heaves when all of a sudden the chopper rocked as if something hit it. Or rather they picked up some extra weight.

Nicolette watched as the pilot disappeared having been yanked out of the cockpit. He was replaced by Price who immediate shoved aside the pistol that had been aimed at him by the copilot. The copilot ended up with a knife to the throat but the damage had been done when the gun went off and hit the instrument panel. Nicolette took advantage of the situation and managed to give Makarov a good punch that loosened his grip. It was not too good since the chopper was going down and Price was trying to control its descent.

Nicolette braced for the impact but it was a hard landing. She ended up landing outside of the chopper onto the roof. The impact knocked her out for a moment. When she came to, she slowly opened her eyes but she was disoriented and wryly thought to herself that she had another concussion. It was then she heard Makarov say, "Good bye, Captain Price."

A shot went off and Nicolette lifted her head. She saw Yuri stumbling weakly and holding his Desert Eagle. He was the one that fired the shot that hit Makarov. But it was like poking the sleeping giant with a stick.

She watched as Makarov fired his weapon and hit Yuri with two shots. The man was down. Nicolette could see him twitching, barely breathing. There was blood everywhere as she slowly clambered to her feet. She looked at Makarov as he looked at Yuri like he was going to shoot him one more time only Price got to him first and punched him.

It became a fistfight and it slowly dawned on Nicolette that they were on a glass roof and she felt pain in her right arm. She looked at it and saw that it was broken and that was after gingerly testing it. She looked up and saw that Makarov had beaten away Price and was going to shoot him.

It was instant reaction as she growled in rage and pounced on Makarov's back. It was not the most elegant of moves she had made but it was her best ever since her training officer taught her how to use her body weight. She was using it this time around and landed on Makarov's back pushing him forward.

Even with a broken arm, she wrapped her arms around the man and basically fought like a girl. She pounded on him with her fists and clawed at his head. She got a good scratch on his neck and across his cheek. She felt satisfaction at having him roar in rage. She barely heard anything; she couldn't even tell if anyone was talking to her. All she saw was red and Makarov. It was too good to last though.

Makarov managed to get her off and gave a hard punch to her face. She fell to the ground hard, scraping her palms and her knees even though she was wearing fatigue pants. Her forehead smacked the ground adding to the pounding headache and she felt a sharp pain in her arm since she landed on her broken arm.

The force of the blow had her land near Yuri's boot. She heaved, taking deep breaths as she heard the grunts of the two men fighting and glass cracking. Finally the glass gave way and she only heard one voice and that was Makarov's as he yelled. She didn't hear Price and fell forward, feeling exhausted.

She must have passed out since she came to and she heard a low moan. She lifted her head and realized how close she was to Yuri. She tried to get up but she was too tired from everything. She dragged herself towards the sound and tried not to wince at the amount of blood that she saw. She pushed herself so she could look down at Yuri. It was awkward with her broken arm but she managed to make it and adjust to look at the man who became a friend and one who saved her.

"Little… bird… safe?"

Nicolette looked down at Yuri. She nodded as her eyes began to water. "Yes… yes."

Yuri looked up at Nicolette and saw the dirt and blood smeared face looking down at him. He gave a slight smile. "Good." He closed his eyes.

"Stay with me Yuri. Please," Nicolette begged. She put her good arm on the man and gave a shake.

Yuri opened his eyes and looked at her. He saw her eyes water and his lips twitched into a smile. "The little bird… is actually… a woman." He chuckled weakly. "Thought… was… a man. Small man…"

Nicolette choked out a chuckle. He would bring up that up since it was the most amusing thing to the people she worked with. "I just had to tell the story of how Price dressed me like a man. Never gets old."

"No. Good story." Yuri went quiet for a moment as his body struggled to stay conscious. "It's all… you. The little bird."

"You never really answered why you call me that." Nicolette was going to trying anything and everything to keep Yuri awake.

"Because you're little," Yuri promptly answered even though he was weak from blood loss. He looked at her and noticed her necklace had fallen out and he saw the pendant he had given her. He slowly reached up and fingered it. His fingers brushed the dog tags she wore from her cover. It was all a part of her. He took a breath and continued, "And because… you are special in many… many ways. You… also… fragile… under… armor. You… fly…"

Yuri stopped since it was getting difficult for him to talk and breathe. Nicolette didn't need him to talk anymore. She knew what he was trying to say. "That was kind… my friend."

"Da…" Yuri breathed, "My friend. And… kept promise… Little bird… safe…"

"Stay with me, Yuri. Stay with me my friend. Please." Nicolette became alarmed since Yuri's breathing was growing weaker. "Don't go."

"Safe…" Yuri breathed his last as he smiled. His hand that had been fingering her pendant had shifted to her hand. Before he died, he had lifted her hand to press a kiss to it.

Nicolette felt her eyes tear as she watched Yuri die. Her lip trembled and she whimpered a little from her emotional pain and a little from her physical pain. She said something in Russian and she gave a gentle kiss of farewell to the man's forehead. Exhaustion ended up overtaking her and she laid down with her head resting on Yuri's chest. Her good hand shifted and she touched the blood matted clothing and her fingers touched the wetness. She started singing the Scottish song that MacTavish sang to her. It was the only thing she could think of at the time.

Nicolette didn't know how much time had passed since she closed her eyes. She did become aware of the sound of feet crackling on broken glass and debris. She kept her eyes such and prayed to anyone listening that it not be Makarov. She didn't know what she would do if Price had died in the fall. Perhaps if she appeared dead, then he would leave her alone. She could disappear that way.

A hand touched her shoulder but she didn't move. She didn't even flinch when she felt a lock of her hair being moved away from her face. She remained still. She could play dead.

"Nico?"

That voice. Nicolette's tired mind started to wake up. She knew that voice. She heard her name again and this time that hand was shaking her shoulder. It was the one that got slammed into the wall and now she was feeling that. She gave a slight moan and slowly opened her eyes. At the same time she was moved so she was looking up at the sky and lifted by the grip on her upper arms. Wait.

"Nico?"

The hands on her upper arms sparked her memory of Makarov and she started struggling. She started flailing her arms at the one that was holding her. She felt pain shoot up her right as she hit a broad shoulder as she started growling her screaming to be let go. It was incoherent and she flailed hard. Her position didn't allow for her to use her legs but she tried to twist her body to use them.

"Nico, snap out of it. It's me. It's Price!"

Nicolette felt herself be given a hard shake and she felt her eyes start to focus as she looked at the man shaking her. The image became clear and she recognized the battle hardened face of Captain John Price. Her eyes scanned it and it reality came crashing down. She couldn't help it and burst into tears and began to sob.

She felt herself being pulled into a gentle embrace and she continued to sob into the man's shoulder. She felt ashamed for crying in front of a man like Price but she couldn't help it. It helped when she heard Price said, "It's all right, Nico. It's over."

That only made her sob harder. It was finally over. She was free of Makarov and Zakhaev. She was free and yet it came with a cost. So much had been lost. And she was free. She buried her face into Price's shoulder and continued to sob. She could smell the scent of his favorite cigar blend and it was fresh. She managed to smile at the relief and murmured something incoherent to anyone but Price. Her good hand gripped him tight, not wanting to let go and to make sure that it was real. She was free.

"Shh… It's over Nico. It's over."

A/N: It is over. Makarov is dead. What now? Stay tuned for the conclusion of Tides of War...