Chapter 24 - Hightailing Out

A feeling of fear filled his chest and throat as he gazed helplessly towards a ravaging hog hooked to a thick, iron chain. The warthog snarled and growled, slobber pouring from its sneering mouth as it shook its massive head violently. Its tusks thrusted out and waved chaotically before his face.

Soap clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth as he brought his chin back to avoid the swiping of the jagged tusks. Sweat built up profusely on his brow while he tried to shake his wrists free from the aged-wooden chair he was imprisoned by. He fought against the coarse rope which dug harshly into his pale skin; the lack of lighting gave him a ghastly appearance.

The giant pig snorted and hissed as it continued to tug forcefully on the heavy chain. The chain wobbled and stiffened with each rigid movement; it emitted a loud metal-on-metal sound with every vicious snap.

Panting, he managed to scoot the legs of the chair back, causing it to creak along the concrete floor. Despite the hog still squealing and thrashing about, he was able to relax just a little once the tusks were no longer a short distance away.

He exhaled heavily and struggled to regain his breath. The dust in the air was thick and stagnant. Where did all of this dust come from? He thought. It spun around him like a sea of haze. His bare chest heaved up and down in attempts to even out his breathing.

Suddenly, he choked on something as he began to cough and hack up what had just shot down his throat. He spat and tried to scratch the itch in the back of his mouth as he cleared his throat and gagged. He leaned forward and crunched in his stomach. Feeling something scratchy on his tongue, he finally managed to spit out the object. It plopped onto his pants and he had to immediately grimace at the sight of what it was. It was a heap of flies and gnats, all locked together by blood. The dust had actually been a thick swarming cloud of bugs. His brow furrowed with distraught.

He flinched at the sudden sound of menacing laughter that erupted from the shadows. Peering up swiftly at the source, he spotted a figure behind the rampaging hog that continued to rip and tear at the space around it. Soap narrowed his eyes and tried to see the figure's face; all that was visible was a tan chin and an evil grin. He swallowed hard, causing his Adam's apple to move prominently, and sat back against the chair.

Even though he couldn't find the eyes, he knew they were staring back with a probing intensity; he could feel them scrolling over his vulnerable state.

The pig suddenly fell silent as it froze still. It panted and blew a heavy stream of air from its nostrils. It appeared fatigued and exhausted. He watched it closely.

Suddenly, the figure's hand abruptly came crashing down onto the base of the chain-link cuffed to a heavy rod. It snickered as it began to loosen the chain's knot; Soap was awed by the strength required to do such a thing.

He twitched with fright as the hog lunged at him but was stopped in its tracks just several inches from his face. The figure laughed teasingly from its shadow by the wall. Its bellowing laugh echoed off the thick concrete walls which created a perimeter around the space Soap found himself trapped in.

Feeling the panic return, Soap tugged at the rope which bound his wrists together. With a quick grunt, he managed to rip himself free and snag the rope in his grasp. But something felt different. The rope in his hand was no longer rough and dry, but cold and smooth. Lifting it up before his face, he was met with the image of a cobra in his palm. Cringing, he tossed it recklessly to the side as it hissed with hostility.

Yet again, the figure chuckled evilly as its hand returned to the chain. Watching the deed unfold, Soap stumbled backwards and tripped over the chair, forcing him to land with a 'thud' on his rear. He peered up with distress at the sound of the chain breaking loose from the pole. Soap staggered onto his feet but had the breath knocked clear from him as the hog charged him and managed to impale him with one its twisted tusks.

Soap quickly stirred, nearly falling from the chair after his chin slipped from the support his hand provided. His chest felt stiff as he quickly gasped with a startled expression. Looking around the room, he realized where he was. It was the hotel room. He must have dozed off. But how? He swore he was awake and alert only moments before.

Rico suddenly sat up swiftly from the bed, fear on her face. It was obvious she had been frightened awake. Her eyes were wide with worry.

She quickly glanced over at him and leaned forward. "Oh my God...what was that? Are you ok?"

Soap met her anxious stare. He sighed and placed his damp face in his hands, just before rubbing his palms down and pulling lightly on the skin.

"Are you alright? What happened?" She inquired with anxiety.

He immediately nodded at her as reality became more and more apparent. "Yes. I'm fine. I must have nodded off."

She blinked at him. "What woke you up? You nearly fell from that chair."

He sat silently for a moment before replying. "Bad dream. One of those ones where you fall over and wake up just before you hit the ground."

She lowered her brow, as if she already knew it was something else, but she accepted the explanation. "I hate those."

"Yeah," he agreed quietly, "me too."

He took a moment to stare into her eyes; both of the soldiers looked drained. But then he was disrupted by a violent headache that shot through his skull completely at random, or so he thought. His head found his hands as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. As he recollected his thoughts, he began to wonder if he hadn't drifted off, but more so, had passed out from the intensity of what felt like a migraine coming on. Rico watched him with concerned eyes and slowly rose from the bed to join his side.

"Are you alright?" She asked softly and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm fine." He spoke into his hands, muffling his voice. "Just ready to get out of here."

The sudden sound of screeching tires from outside, which snapped them into a state of alertness, emitted loudly from the direction of the window. It was quickly followed by the sound of metal caving in and plastic smashing. The noise caused Soap to rise swiftly and pace for the window with wide strides. Peering out between two narrowly open blinds, he spotted two vehicles were just involved in a fender bender, and a bad one at that, with a large, ebony Denali as the victim to rear-bumper damage; hazards blinking.

Two men stepped from the SUV, angered looks plastered on their faces, and finely dressed in formal attire. One gesticulated at the driver in the white sedan. Hearing the growing commotion, Rico joined Soap by the window and peeped out.

"What the fuck is going on?" She questioned quietly.

Soap shook his head as he watched the event unfold.

The driver in the sedan slowly rose out of the car and gestured wildly towards the tail-end of the Denali; he was met with an even more infuriated reaction from the two men in suits. The two soldiers could make out very little of what each person spat out venomously at one another.

While the two parties began to bicker and wave their hands around with a chaotic fashion, Soap and Rico observed it closely. Narrowing his eyes, a thought occurred to him; Soap quickly looked over his shoulder.

"What bloody time is it?" He asked deeply as he glanced at his wristwatch and rotated the face of the watch. Sighing, he lowered his hand while Rico stared up at him with wondering eyes. "It's almost 0400."

Before Rico could say anything in response, a loud pop emitted from the street, making Soap and Rico flinch with sudden distraught. They returned to the window to see one of the suited men hovering over the corpse of the fallen sedan owner; his cellphone's screen glowed eerily next to his now lifeless hand. The man in the suit held on tightly to a Glock with the end of the barrel smoking out the heat of the released gunpowder.

"Jesus fucking Christ…." Soap murmured before quickly spinning around to gather up their things. Rico hastily moved from the window to help locate their belongings.

While Soap grabbed up any traces of their presence and their gear, his eyes glistened with intense focus. "Vasquez found us. I bet that fucking cunt at the front desk tipped us off." He quickly glanced up at her and tossed one of the bluetooth radio ear buds at her; she caught it effortlessly. "Looks like you were right. I should have told that bitch to fuck off."

"Hey," Rico declared with active hands snatching up a holster and her M9. "It's not your fault. All that matters now is getting the fuck out of here and contacting Price."

Without saying a word, he straightened up and threw the duffle bag over his shoulder and gestured for her to follow. Placing a hand on the knob, he slowly turned the handle to peer out into the hall. A few people had emerged from their rooms in confusion; he assumed it was from them being startled from their sleep by the single pop of the Glock. Their faces looked concerned and bewildered.

He looked over his shoulder at Rico and nodded in her direction. Stepping out from the room, he spoke.

"Our only option now is the fire escape. Stay near, but watch your distance."

Once completely out in the hallway, Soap and Rico moved along casually but with quickened strides. Their eyes were wide with awareness and their minds keen with concentration.

Very little people gave them attention as they walked passed; a woman had a phone up to her ear as she chewed on her nails. Seeing her caused Soap to bring out his radio piece and reconnect with the old man.

"Price," Soap began once he heard the sound of Price's raspy words. "We're leaving. But there's been a problem."

"A problem?" Price sat forward with a stern expression.

"Aye." Soap glanced back at Rico to meet up with her sharp stare; she had the trained eye of a skilled marksman. "We think Vasquez's men are out in front of the hotel lobby."

"You think, or you know?"

"I'm just going to go out on a limb and say it was undoubtedly Vasquez's men." Soap finally reached the fire escape doorway and paused. "A civilian had been shot out on the street. So we're booking it before we end up next to him."

Price rubbed the thick, greying hairs on his face. "I'll send out Talon. They'll be in a taxi along the main stretch hugging the western coast. Keep your eyes peeled for them. The vehicle will be located north and a klick outside of the Punta Gorda outskirts."

"Copy that." Soap brought down his hand and grasped the hilt of the M9 sticking from the holster around his right thigh. Removing the gun and gripping it tightly between his wide palms, he motioned for Rico.

"Let's go." He said lowly, placing a hand onto the push-latch as she nodded at him.

Shoving the handle forward, the early morning air hit their faces, but the warm sensation was quickly disrupted by the sound of the alarm system tripping.

"Mother fuck-" Soap muttered through gritting teeth. He suddenly had a burst of speed and shot down the metal steps with quick feet. "Go, go, go."

The movement and the screeching siren sent a rush down Rico's spine, causing her to climb down the stairs after him; a firm expression plastered on her face. Reaching the end of the steps, they came upon a dead end and were greeted by a folded-in ladder. Reacting immediately to the obstacle, Soap kicked at the hinge that locked it shut. After a few attempts, the ladder slid down with a rusted metal-noise and stopped shy of the cracked pavement below.

They both quickly checked their surroundings before Soap put up his gun and placed the bottom of his soles against the ladder's sides.

"Cover me." He ordered.

Rico peered hastily towards the end of the alleyway to cover overwatch. Hopping down one step, Soap gripped the parallel ends and slid his weight down the entirety of the ladder. He landed with a quiet 'thud' and took a step back.

"Alright. Come." He spoke up to her with his hands back on the handgun.

Following his pace, she slid down after him and was quick to join his side. He gestured his head off to the left and rounded on his heels to proceed further towards the alley and away from the street. They hugged the left wall and strayed from the scarce overhead lighting; the early morning shadows kept them well hidden underneath its dark veil.

Rounding the corner of a brown-brick building, they took shelter near a dumpster and waited momentarily in the darkness with the sound of the fire alarm still shrieking in the distance and echoing off the alleyway walls.

Peering off down some ways, Soap spotted another streetlight which illuminated a chainlink fence lined next to beaten, tin trashcans. Rico followed his stare and noticed a strange ambience that loomed over the end of the stretch. The sound of rising voices came off from the streets; their growing uproar indicated that civilians had just discovered what had unfolded on the streets below their windows.

Without hesitating, Soap jogged off and continued down their original course. His shoes tapping against the concrete with strangely hush steps. Staying close and being mindful of her surroundings, Rico mimicked his motions. They soon found themselves standing before the towering chainlink barrier as they gawked upwards and met up with its pinnacle.

Setting his gun back into its holster, Soap began scaling the fence and quickly placed himself on the opposite side where he waited patiently for Rico's presence to be beside him once again. While she reached the top, he watched the alleyways closely.

Reuniting, their quickened pace carried them down the rest of the way until they reached the mouth of the alleyway. Coming to a sudden stop, they placed their backs up against the northern wall. Evening out his breathing, Soap slowly peeped out to observe their surroundings. Everything seemed still, and little sign of life was present. His eyes ran over the street signs while he pondered thoroughly.

Soap brought his attention back to his radio piece. "Price. We're out of the hotel and waiting in an alleyway. Where is the rendezvous?"

"Carretera Turistica is the main road that takes you out of Punta Gorda. It will lead you northbound. Talon will be waiting idly for your arrival on that same street about a klick to the north and near the Bahía de Santiago de Cuba. They will be in an orange, Rápido taxi service vehicle." Price replied calmly. "From there, Talon will transport you two to the Fábrica de Cemento José Mercerón dock where Shorty will greet you with a Little Bird. Easy enough."

"Copy that." Soap lowered his hand back to the M9 and gave Rico a reassuring look before resuming with his precipitous stride.

"I will be seeing you shortly." Price added-in firmly before silence filled their ears.

Rico watched the sidewalks as she wondered over a thought. "Hey, Soap."

"Yeah?"

"Will it really be that easy?" She asked lowly.

He took a moment to think over her words briefly. "All we can do is finish the task and hope for the best."

Quietness fell between them as focus quickly replaced any form of worry. The time to hone in their senses and escape undetected was nigh. Reaching the end of the street and coming upon street signs, they swiftly noticed a weather-worn, horizontal sign reading 'Carretera Turistica'.

"There it is." Soap announced as he jogged for the adjacent sidewalk with Rico close to his tail.

Meeting up with the promising road, they followed its guidance and avoided their existence being revealed by any streetlights. Soap glanced at his wristwatch to get a check on their current direction and the time. Maintaining poise and professionalism, they crept along the main drag and headed north in search of the matte-orange glow of the taxi, which would be illuminated by the tepid sunrise.

As they clambered up against the bay's coast, a few cars would pass by, causing them to take shelter on the hillside. The angle forced them to walk unevenly and refocus their center of gravity. Sea salt filled their nostrils as the breeze rolled in and rustled their hair. The only noise was the 'whooshing' of passing cars and the misty waves of the Caribbean Sea.

Keeping track of the time traveled, Soap began to reappear near the highway and peered out over top the guardrail. He motioned for her to join his side, where she was quick to follow the order.

They both took a brief moment to look over the landscape; it was oddly beautiful. The tropical plant life, the warm air, the sunrise resurrecting from its grave in the hills and casting a warm hue onto the objects below.

Suddenly, down off some ways, a lone taxi sat oddly out of place in the emergency lane. It hugged alongside the wall of palms which set up a barrier against the mountain range sitting expansively behind it.

"That has to be it." Soap commented as he rose up to straighten his posture. He stepped over the guardrail and offered Rico a hand to accept. Her hand landed gingerly against his palm, signalling him to help her over the railing effortlessly.

They both stared out across the wide-laned road and gazed intently at the taxi's fresh coat of paint and dark-tinted windows.

Soap looked both ways and waited for the low-flow of traffic to dissipate before taking a step onto the street. Noticing the break, they both jogged across the yellow and white lines and soon found themselves standing by the taxi's side. The driver side window rolled down and revealed a man with a stern expression.

"Who delivers Justice and Order?" The man asked deeply.

Soap met up with his eyes and flattened his brow. He immediately remembered the Darkhorse call-sign. "Themis."

The driver nodded and gestured his head back. "Get in."

The two soldiers quickly complied and placed themselves in the backseat of the Ford Taurus. Within the interior confines, they realized there was a second Talon member sitting cozily in the passenger seat. He quickly glanced at them with deep, brown eyes and nodded firmly with approval. Rico and Soap relaxed back against the cushioned seat, and kept their sidearms close.

The driver put the sedan into drive and eased back into the flow of traffic just before accelerating to the appropriate speed.

Once the cab was running at a moderate pace, the Talon soldier in the passenger seat spoke into the space around them. "This is Talon. We're inbound with the two Darkhorse operatives. ETA 10 minutes."

The driver suddenly grabbed their attention. "Let me introduce myself. Because I'm sure you two would like to know who's driving you today." His voice came out mildly sarcastic. "I'm Schneider, and this is Davis."

Davis in the passenger seat rose a hand to give them a quick wave.

Rico nodded in understanding as Soap decided to speak for them. "I'm MacTavish. And this is Weiss." He jutted a thumb in Rico's direction.

Schneider motioned his head in agreement. "Yes. We know." He trailed off briefly before continuing. "Well met."

After his sentence ended, a silence filled the cab as all of its passengers became fixated on reaching the light at the end of the tunnel. They were close, and everyone knew it. Rico slowly looked in the corner of her vision and found Soap's profile. He had an intense, clear-eyed stare locked onto the road ahead.

A short interval of time dragged by, which felt like an eternity, when suddenly Schneider eased on the brake.

"...the fuck?" He muttered from his position behind the wheel.

His reaction caused everyone's eyes to land on what appeared to be a checkpoint setup by local authorities.

Soap leaned forward hastily, hands on the backs of the front seats, and jeered. "Is that a checkpoint? Why the fuck is there a checkpoint? We were told they were no longer active."

Schneider released an annoyed sigh as the taxi came to a steady stop behind a line of slow moving traffic.

Davis furrowed his brow and spoke into the radio. "Echo, this is Talon. We've come upon what appears to be a checkpoint." He sat quietly for a moment as he listened to an answer. "Course of action?"

He nodded slowly, as he listened to the words.

"Roger that. Give us an update as soon as possible." He finally said after a short wait.

Soap and Rico heard Price's voice return into their ears.

"Soap. Maintain composure unless given a reason to retaliate." He ordered. "You have clearance. We need you two out alive."

"Copy that." Soap murmured, hand lowering to grip his handgun tightly.

Rico swallowed hard as she watched the officers checking IDs before letting the cars pass through. She narrowed her eyes quizzically.

"Are those law enforcement or Vasquez's people?" She said matter-of-factly. "They have badges."

Before anyone else could answer, Soap claimed the next sentence. "Probably Vasquez's men disguised to play the part. No one is going to question officials in uniform."

With every car that was approved to pass the checkpoint, their hearts raced more and more.

But then Schneider and Davis' eyes abruptly lit up.

"And you're sure of that?" Schneider asked into his radio piece.

Davis gestured his head with approval, making both Soap and Rico question what was going on.

By the time that short conversation had ended, Soap had to exhale through his nostrils and shift in his seat as they neared second in line. Rico lowered her posture with watchful eyes.

The tension built up immensely as they rolled forward and were now in front; everyone clenched their jaws tightly. Schneider brought the cab to a steady halt and rolled down the window to meet the stare of the officer. Their eyes locked; both men shot each other firm expressions.

The officer rose a flashlight up and shined the light into Schneider's face and was met with a disapproving glare.

"El sol está fuera . ¿Es necesario hacer brillar una luz en mi cara? (The sun is out. Is it necessary to shine a light in my face?)" Schneider questioned intrusively.

Davis rested back into his seat with a faint smile while the officer stared with annoyance. Raising the light up, the ray of light found Davis in the passenger seat and illuminated him as if he were in the center of a stage light.

"(Is that funny?)" The officer asked.

Soap and Rico gave each other rather perplexed looks as the events unfolded.

Davis let the smile fade as he relaxed his weight forward to get a better look at the officer. "(So, what's the hold-up for, sir? Trying to catch DUIs?)"

"No." The officer said as he ran his tongue over his teeth and flared his nostrils. "(We had a report of fleeing suspects to a multiple-person homicide case last night. We were ordered to set-up checkpoints to search for suspects matching the descriptions.)"

Schneider nodded slowly. "(Never have heard of any scenarios where law enforcement made such a competent attempt at finding alleged culprits.)" He said nonchalantly. "(It's wonderful to see you all setting such a great example.)"

Before the officer could reply, Davis flashed a smile. "(You all must be scraping in the money! Mind me asking which region you work out of so that I can put in praise?)"

The officer's mouth went flat as he stared skeptically. "(It doesn't matter. All that matter is doing our job.)"

"(Oh? You can't disclose that?)" Davis inquired with intrigue.

"No."

"(Why not?)"

The officer shifted his weight and continued to glare daggers. "(Boss's orders. Now please-)"

"(Your boss wouldn't happen to go by the name Vasquez by any chance, does he?)"

The man's face went grim. "(You need to step out of the vehicle this instant.)"

Schneider looked him over closely as a thought came to him. "(What have we done?)"

"(You shouldn't know that.)"

Davis' eyes flashed with intelligence. "(But the murders at Vasquez's villa is all over the news.)" He let his eyes dart to the back of the car where he spotted Soap grasping the M9 tightly, ready to raise and take a shot.

The officer noticed the way Davis' attention diverted. It persuaded him to take a step back and lean away to get a better look into the back of the cab. Schneider, as if already knowing what was coming, shifted his weight to the right. The officer peered in and saw Soap's intimidating eyes gazing straight into his soul.

His eyes widened as he reached for his gun. "Es él! (It's him!)"

Soap reacted quickly and aimed down his sights. The man began to raise up his sidearm but was interrupted by a 9mm bullet exiting the Beretta's barrel and piercing through his forehead.

He toppled to the blacktop, and by the time he dropped lifelessly to the solid surface, Schneider slammed on the gas and drove off, blowing passed a line of cones. The four other officers peered up with dismay and realized what just transpired.

Rico had turned desperately in her seat to watch the officers all jump into their vehicles to pursue them. She swiftly faced the front with bewilderment in her eyes.

"And why did we handle it like that?" She asked with amazement. "Surely we could have just….oh, I don't know, blended in?"

As Schneider accelerated the taxi to illegal speeds, Davis turned in his seat and smiled. "Echo got back with us. They had checked with two local police departments. Not one of them could verify any checkpoints, or even knew what Echo was talking about."

"So they were Vasquez's men." Soap commented flatly as he craned his neck over his shoulder to get a view of their rear sights. "I'd keep that lead foot going strong."

"Wasn't planning on lightening up," Schneider stated with a conniving smile.

"Echo," Davis began, "it seems we have encountered a mild problem….yes, ma'am, we're being pursued….no we currently have no visuals….copy that."

Price's voice returning grabbed the attention of the two Darkhorse soldiers. "Soap. Rico. Get ready to jump out of that taxi as soon as you reach the dock. Shorty has been ordered to arrive in less than 5 minutes with that Little Bird." His voice sounded slightly alarmed.

"Copy that-" Soap affirmed but had his attention quickly captured by a burst of movement in his peripherals.

"Look out!" Rico shouted at the sight of a SUV launching towards them from a side road as they just barely passed through a red light.

Schneider jerked the wheel to the left. "Whoa, there! Assholes!"

They managed to avoid the Denali that came careening in their direction; screeching tires and burning rubber filled the seascape environment up with the sound of hectic chaos. Gaining a small lead and an opening, Schneider accelerated further ahead and cut-off the Denali. While this happened, Davis had risen an MP5 up from the passenger side floor.

"I think we may be needing this." He commented calmly. He was immediately awarded the joy of hearing Schneider's entertained chuckle.

Spinning the wheel, Schneider avoided the slower traffic up ahead, but had his parade quickly rained on once an enemy cruiser from the checkpoint found its way next to the taxi. Everyone peered over at it, ready to take aim, but were greeted by two men with guns raised in their direction.

Slightly hitting the brakes, Schneider let the cruiser blow past them before quickly accelerating and regrouping with them, but now on the opposite side.

"Their guard's down, lower those windows!" Soap ordered.

Realizing he left the window lock on, Schneider furrowed his brow and gritted his teeth. "Copy that!"

The windows all rolled down, allowing Soap, Rico, and Davis to have a clearer aim. Soap rose up the M9 and fired off several rounds towards the driver while the men inside the cruiser were hastily trying to regain their senses. A few bullets wisped passed their faces, one grazed the driver's nose, causing him to shriek and grab hold of the cartilage on the end of his face.

"Oh, close one! But try to hit that bloody wanker where it counts!" Davis laughed.

Before Soap could fire off a round after focusing his aim, the cruiser hit the brakes and slowed down tremendously.

"Oh shit! Looks like you scared 'em off." Schneider snickered.

All of their attention was swiftly grabbed by the Denali returning.

Davis got comfortable and turned to face his window. "Looks like it's our turn, love." He sent a confident stare towards Rico who sat directly behind him.

She nodded at him as the Denali came turboing next to them; Soap was holding his breath once the two vehicles became parallel, especially once one of the men was aiming towards Rico.

Firing off rounds, Rico and Davis let the Denali have it. The driver in the Denali ducked, but not without taking a hit from Rico's M9 and several hits from Davis' MP5. The man in the backseat was able to blast off a few shots before the driver lost consciousness and passed out against the steering wheel. It wasn't long before the Denali swerved into oncoming traffic with a horn blaring loudly.

Rico turned to watch as the Denali disappeared behind them and flipped into several rolling tumbles. Schneider and her cheered at the sight of debris flying from the exterior of the SUV.

"Ah, shit…" Davis panted. He held a strong hand up to his arm. "I think they might have got me." He pulled his hand away, which was impressively still, despite having blood on it. "Yep. They did."

"Fuck. Where at?" Schneider asked hurriedly.

Davis looked it over and sighed nonchalantly. "Just two in my right arm, no big deal-" he suddenly noticed Schneider had been looking his injury over instead of watching the highway. "Eyes on the road, you moron!"

Schneider swerved back to center and sighed calmly. "Fuck you, we're fine."

Davis rolled his eyes and glanced into the side-mirror. "Looks like we lost them…"

Soap sat forward and grabbed Schneider's attention. "What's the ETA?"

"Uh…" Schneider looked at the traffic lights they blew passed and then glanced at the dashboard clock. "30 seconds."

Soap quickly got in touch with Price. "We're nearing the docks! ETA 30 seconds."

Price had to chuckle lightly. "A more prompt update would have sufficed."

"Get off my back, old man. We got angry Cubans brandishing their small cocks at us." Soap replied stalely, causing Price to emit a very faint snicker.

"Shorty will be getting in touch with you momentarily." Price finally responded.

"Copy that."

As Schneider veered the wheel to the left and barreled down a gravel side road, Shorty managed to establish communications with the rest of them.

"Rico. Chin. Do you read?" Her voice buzzed over the radio.

"Affirmative. We read you loud and clear." Rico answered firmly.

"Copy that. I just made a perimeter check. I'll land once I have visuals." They could almost see Shorty nodding her head with a paper lollipop stick poking from her mouth.

Davis turned in his seat to get a look at Soap and Rico; hand still clenching his wound. "Alright, it was fun, but we have to part ways. We'll drop you two off in a hurry, so be ready to jump from a moving vehicle." He flashed a smile which masked some of the pain on his face. "But don't worry, we'll go slow."

"You're not coming with us?" Rico asked.

Schneider shook his head. "Negative. We have to regroup with our unit...and dispose of this taxi."

Soap and Rico understood the reasoning. Their attention quickly snapped to the gravel road in front of them when a construction site became visible, along with a crane and several excavators. Shorty's Little Bird swung it's propellers through the air, causing the nearby vegetation to dance wildly in the gusts.

"Alright," Schneider announced, "here's your stop!"

Soap opened the door and swung the duffle bag over his shoulder once the taxi slowed to an acceptable pace. Rico followed after him as they both emerged from the taxi and gained control of their momentum upon exiting. Shorty quickly spotted them and began to initiate a landing once the two Talon members drove away in a hurry, leaving a gravel dust trail in their wake.

Soap veiled the morning sun from his eyes as he peered up towards the Little Bird that was gradually nearing land.

Shorty had to huff. "You two will unfortunately not be graced by Ivan's presence this morning. Dumb ass broke his wrist jumping off one of the Jeeps. So I have a Talon member up here with me as my co-pilot." Her voice suddenly turned sarcastic and playful. "He's fine, I guess."

They heard the man's quiet laugh emit faintly in their radio pieces.

But then, something abruptly caught their eye from the small gravel road they had ventured down moments before. Everyone perked up and gazed over towards the break in the treeline. Off in the distance, the sound of an angry engine came thundering down the road.

"Shite." Soap cursed as he grabbed Rico's arm and pulled her along.

"Wait…" Shortly said. "Fuck. You guys brought company."

She sent a stern look towards her co-pilot as they quickly began to pull back on the cyclics, forcing the Little Bird to elevate further from the ground.

"Get rid of them!" She barked.

Soap and Rico hastily took shelter behind a set of concrete barriers and brought up their pistols to rest against the surface of the warm manmade stone. The second cruiser from before, which they thought they had lost in the midst of taking out the Denali and the nose of the other cruiser driver, came through the break in the treeline and came to a screeching stop. The two men inside quickly jumped out and aimed their submachine guns up towards the Little Bird.

On cue, Soap and Rico began to shoot towards their targets, but weren't quick enough to prevent the two men from pulling on the triggers. A spray of bullets went soaring through the air in the Little Bird's direction. The bullets pinged off the windshield, placing cracks and ridges all over its surface.

"Fuck!" Shorty exclaimed with distraught.

One of the men dropped ungracefully to the ground after receiving several bullets through his torso.

"Shit. I'm out." Rico stated.

"Extra mag in the bag." Soap replied firmly as he aimed towards the last man.

Before Soap could shoot him dead, he unloaded the rest of his submachine gun's clip towards the Little Bird. Growing frustrated, Soap took off his last 2 shots; they were well-placed as the bullets punctured through the man's neck.

Rico changed magazines and sighed, but was rudely snapped out of her relaxed state by Shorty's panicked words.

"Ah, SHIT!" Shorty hollered over the radio. Her co-pilot had suddenly smashed his head into one of the cyclics as he thumped forward; a large hole in his skull began to unleash a stream of blood as his face pushed the cyclic forward.

Shorty's heart raced as the chopper viciously jerked forward and flew towards the treeline. The Little Bird tilted sharply as it rocked to-and-fro.

Rico and Soap rose up and watched in panic.

"Shorty, pull up, now!" Soap demanded worriedly over the radio.

Shorty gritted her teeth as she tried to push her co-pilot off of the cyclic, with one hand still gripping the other cyclic. She glanced up at the impending treeline and back to the Talon member with sweat building on her brow. With one last heavy exhale and exertion of energy, she stiff-armed her hand into his shoulder and cleared him from the stick.

But she wasn't quick enough.

The skids of the Little Bird bashed against the top canopy of the palms and rocked the Little Bird chaotically to the side, enough to have the propellers whipping through the overgrowth and snaring on the vines and greenery. The sound of propellers' base letting out a mechanic sigh of failure rung loudly in her ears.

"Ah, I'm going down!" She screamed over the radio.

Then the Little Bird disappeared into the treeline and was followed by a cloud of dark smoke and a vicious vibration that shook at their feet.

"No!" Rico cried out and ran for the trees.

Soap cursed loudly and ran after her.