Author's Note: All properties are the rights of their respective owners, Marvel, Respawn Entertainment, etc.

If any of you have three free hours and an Amazon Prime membership, then there are worse things you can be doing than watching the 1977 classic, 'A Bridge Too Far' about Operation: Market Garden. It may not have been one of the movies I watched before writing this arc, but there are some bits that have the same feeling I want this story to have, nevermind the amazing special effects (no CGI anywhere! Everything you see was actually done in front of a camera!), all star cast, and highly authentic retelling of the history on which the movie is based (every thing that happens is based on actual events), and you have one of the best war movies ever made. In the words of Joe Bob, "Four stars! Go check it out!"

Blaze1992: You raise a very good point, Shadowcat has an interesting powerset with lots of possibilities. As for why she wasn't doing those things, the answer is simple. The fight shown was the first one, there were no wounded yet, and there were no Titans or tanks for her to do a sapper type maneuver against. Of course, that may not be the case later on, you'll just have to wait and see.

I also want to admit that her being there and fighting like that is more in service to the drama than tactics. Obviously, I strive to balance those as best I can but I'm still learning, so feedback is welcome.

kenodoxia: Yeah, I've never been satisfied with how that played out exactly. I'm taking another look at that section and hopefully have a revision of it up by this time next week.

As for the title, yes, it is another Sabaton track (I swear there will be others eventually), but this time it comes from their most recent album (at the time of writing), The Great War, which came out in 2019. Unsurprisingly, every song from that album is about some part of World War I, from the advent of tanks in 'The Future of Warfare' to the greatest flying ace of the war in 'The Red Baron' and Lawerence of Arabia in 'Seven Pillars of Wisdom' to the longest continuous battle of the war in 'Fields of Verdun.' It also has one of my favorite songs full stop, 'The Attack of the Dead Men.'

'Ghost in the Trenches' is about one man, a Canadian Aboriginal Sniper named Francis "Peggy" Pegahmagabow, who was one of the most highly decorated Canadian soldiers ever and credited with 378 confirmed kills as well as 300 captured during his time on the western front. In a service record that reads like the levels of a Call of Duty campaign, he saw action at Ypres, the Somme, Passchendaele, and the Hundred Days Offensive. He was known not only as an exceptional marksman, but also a scout and messenger, braving no mans land to get messages to their destination, guide men to the line, or in one case scavenge ammunition so his allies could hold off German attacks. Knowing all that, it shouldn't be surprising I looked to him for inspiration, and this chapter is mostly about the one character who shares a few traits with this living, breathing phantom.

Power Without Question – Chapter 47: Ghost in the Trenches

Into battle, the gas has them pinned

Then this soldier invoke the spirits of the wind

Under fire, a ghost that roams the battlefield

Move between the lines, a soldier breaking the confines

Just another man and rifle, a marksman and a scout revealed

Makes his way from trench to trench alone, moving undetected

"Get more fire on that left side! Left side!" screamed a Sable trooper over the radio, "We are FUBAR and need to fall back!" Frank could do naught but listen as he kept his eyes focused down the road while the radio continued on the table. Four hours after first contact and they still hadn't seen anything on this side while Sable and Fisk's men seemed to be getting all the action.

Castle didn't ponder the intricacies of the situation, keeping his eyes split between the street ahead of him and the drunkard to his right. "Alpha 1 Foxtrot you are cleared to disengage, break contact and join Bravo 1 Foxtrot at the second defensive line" returned the controller coolly. "Be advised, FAR support callsign 'Stingray' is inbound, ETA 3 mikes."

"Nice to see the flyboys getting involved" grunted Frank as he kept up his watch, stealing a quick glance at Barker, who sat sprawled out and spinning around in one of the left behind office chairs. Four hours after first contact and none of the defenders in the NYPD sector had so much as fired a shot. Still, the Punisher was remaining vigilant; enough time in Afghanistan had told him that anytime it felt like it was too quiet, that was because it probably was. "But what about us Captain? Anything? Or does the town drunk the biggest thing we have to worry about?"

At the words, both Castle and Watanabe turned to look at said drunk, who was still spinning in his rolling chair, singing a shanty as he drank from his flask. While the lawwoman's face was obscured, Frank could see the creases in the fabric as she frowned and the way she shifted uncomfortably. "Still no contact anywhere in our sector" she repeated for the third time that hour before she suddenly turned and squared up to the Marine, "I'll be honest Castle, you have the best handle on what's going on here. What's your take?" she asked honestly.

The Punisher 'hmmed' deeply and worked his jaw before answering. "We need eyes ma'am" he said simply, "the radios are so cluttered we don't know if our flanks are secure. Our boys here aren't going to be able to manage a fighting retreat under pressure and if we get outflanked then everyone on this side is toast" he answered candidly.

"Is that the technical term Castle, toast?" asked the Captain wryly as she rubbed her head through her covering before muttering a curse under her breath. After a moment, she seemed to have hardened her resolved as she looked over her rifle and got up off the desk she was sitting on, "Alright then, I'll go and have a look" she decided as Castle began to get to his feet, "By myself" she added.

"Captain…"

"Not up for debate" cut off Watanabe sternly, "as much as I don't like this, you need to stay here and keep everyone's heads screwed on. If it really is as bad as it sounds out there, then I'll radio you directly to have everyone pull back." The Master Sergeant glared at Yuri for a moment but nodded in acceptance despite his objections. "I'm counting on you to hold down the fort and keep everyone alive, but that doesn't mean I trust you to watch my back."

"Understood" grunted the Punisher in return as he settled back in behind his Mk 48 and Yuri turned to make for the fire escape so she could begin her recon run. "Good hunting Captain, and remember, Celer, Silens, Mortalis" he called out, reciting the motto of his unit in the Corps, which translated to 'Swift, Silent, Deadly.'

The Captain merely gave him a slight nod before vanishing behind her cloak and slipping out the window, prompting the Marine to look over his other shoulder and see Barker leaning back in his chair. Growling in distaste, Castle lashed out with his boot and kicked the chair, sending it rolling away until it hit a cord and tipped over, sending its occupant tumbling down and left him sprawled out on the floor.

At this, the Punisher could only shake his head.

Yuri involuntarily let out a sigh of relief as she felt the jump kit on her back come to life and hiss as she began to slow before he boots gently kissed the ground and she regained her focus. Clutching her rifle tightly, the NYPD Captain dashed across the street before remembering she wasn't confined to the ground anymore and planted her right foot as she launched herself up. Immediately, the Kit responded, another burst of deep blue flame sending her skywards and towards the wall as she planted her feet on it.

As the Cop hit the perpendicular surface running, the device was still hard at work, the jet of fire continuous as it fought against gravity to keep her encumbered weight up and pressed into the wall. The sensation still threw Yuri for a loop as she surged forwards and leapt across to the opposite brick surface smoothly, still running despite the unnatural angle. Reaching the end of the alley way she jumped into the wall blocking her path forward and used the retractable Ripper blades to slow her descent before she was back on the ground. Swiftly readying her MCX, she used the muzzle to nudge the unlatched door open and swiftly made her way through the sandwich shop and continued her push southwards.

Two blocks later, and she still hadn't encountered any opposition. The area was devoid of life except for a few stray animals that roamed the streets, seemingly just as confused as the Captain. Pursing her lips behind her mask, Yuri turned east, towards the Sable International sector and got moving again, suppressing the unease that came with seeing the streets of the city she had grown up in so barren and quiet.

But that was replaced by a different kind of unease as she heard colossal footfalls and immediately activated her cloak as she dashed into cover and scampered through a window and into an apartment. Staying low, she made her way through the building until she reached the other side and looked out a window onto the street. Just as she did, a car in the road was unceremoniously crushed by a massive metallic foot as Yuri looked up at the enormous Titan it was attached to. It was even larger than the Marauders, bulkier and rounded, hefting a massive grenade launcher type weapon as it stomped its way through the streets with a group of IMC foot soldiers in tow.

As Yuri scanned the street, she locked eyes with one of the troopers and instantly ducked back down; afraid she might have been spotted. Activating her cloak in a panic she dashed out of sight and watched the window as a soldier came up and peered inside, but seemingly saw nothing. Letting out a sigh of relief, Yuri pulled up her mask to allow herself to draw in deep breaths until she heard a door get kicked in, her head snapping to the source as she yanked her mask back down.

"Make this quick," barked a gruff sounding IMC trooper as Yuri stiffened, "if Harris did see someone then take care of them fast, we got a deadline to keep." Eyes widening behind the six lens goggles, Yuri opened a door labeled 'stairs' and made her way up the steps as quick as she dared, willing her footsteps to remain silent on the wooden steps. Behind her, she could hear the IMC searching the building room by room, heavy bootsteps on the tile floor and doors being kicked open. Reaching the third floor, she opened the door, only for it to let out an ear piercing screech. "Up the stairs! GO!"

All pretenses at stealth were dropped as Yuri rammed her shoulder through the door and sprinted down the hall. Hearing the door squeak again, she turned around and brought her rifle up, snapping off a shot that slammed straight into the face of the lead soldier, snapping his head back and painting the door with blood and brains. But Yuri didn't stand and fight, diving into a room as a torrent of lead ripped through the air where she had just been standing.

Frantically pulling a frag grenade from her belt, she yanked the pin and rolled it out into the hallway before shoulder checking the next door open as she heard the explosion, muffled by the walls. Surging forwards with no real plan or sense of direction as she threw the next door open to be face to face with a white clad IMC trooper and snapped a pair of shots into his chest reflexively.

Before she had a second to breathe, her rifle was knocked away and she was punched in the face by a second soldier and recoiled from the blow. Roaring in rage, adrenaline surging through her veins, Yuri extended the Ripper blades and swung, plunging them into his chest, watching the light fade from his eyes before he ceased struggling and the Captain let the corpse fall to the floor. Unable to help herself, Yuri found her eyes fixated on the two gaping holes she had made in the man's chest as they bled profusely, turning the stark white kit a grisly shade of red. She was swiftly knocked from her gawking when a bullet snapped right by her head, causing her to reflexively draw her Rhino and fire blindly behind her as she stepped over the two bodies of the men she had just killed.

Not looking back to see if her magnum rounds found their mark, she resumed running and after firing her sixth and final shot she slid as a burst tore through the air, rounds perforating the walls as she slid out a door and rushed to get back to her feet. Sprinting down the hall, her exo assisted legs pushing her past her own limits before she realized she had made a critical error, running into a dead end.

But there was a window in this corner, and with no other options available she smashed it with the butt of her rifle and jumped out, tucking her head under an arm as she crashed through a second floor window on the next building. She was not out of the woods yet, running again before ducking around the corner, listening out before felling she was alone enough and allowed herself a moment to catch her breath and reloaded her revolver.

Unknowingly, however, Watanabe had stepped out of the frying pan and into the fire, literally.

Outside, a massive mechanical clanking got her attention before a 'thunk' echoed through the street and there was a flash at the corner where Yuri had entered the building. Looking over her shoulder, the Captain blanched as she saw a massive pool of liquid fire on the floor, flames licking up the walls and beginning to spread.

She began to move away, only to hear that 'thunk' again and the opposite corner erupt in the same thermite fueled blaze and Yuri looked out a window to see the massive Titan stuffing another round into the breach of its launcher. Head swiveling, she saw her only viable exit was an elevator as she used her Ripper to pry the doors opened and recalled how Cooper had traversed the elevator shaft in her building before trying to replicate the move.

Squeezing through the narrow gap she had created and taking a breath before a wave of heat slammed into her back, prompting her to swallow her fears and leap forward, the jump kit propelling her to the opposite wall. Swinging her legs around and planting her boots on the wall, she bent he knees and sprung off the wall of the shaft, her kit propelling her up and to the next wall as a plume of fire that bit at her heels as she continued her ascent. Once she had reached the top of the shaft, Yuri slowly pried the door open and squeezed through onto the top floor of the burning building.

With haste, she found a window away from the street full of IMC and looked out to see a rooftop below her and activated her cloak before leaping down to it and turning to look at the street below. The Titan was continuing to look for her in the building she had just vacated, the fires starting to simmer down as the troopers congregated in the street. After a few minutes, the IMC finally concluded their search and began moving on, further into the city.

Likewise, it was time for Yuri to get moving, taking extra care to avoid any more excitement.

Taking a break from his vigil, Castle returned from a trip to the head to find another of the pilots speaking with Barker. Eyeing the pair with a hint of contempt, the Marine returned to his position when he sensed he was being followed. Glancing back over his shoulder, he saw the Pilot, his helmet having a T shaped visor and a bullpup rifle slung over his back. "You Castle?" he asked, to which the Punisher nodded, "Barker says you're in charge now that Captain Watanabe went out looking for the IMC?" he asked. Nodding again, Castle looked out to see if there was any movement or anything that looked out of place. "She does know that one of the ACEs would have been better equipped to handle that?"

"Must've figured you boys would have been more useful here if the IMC do decide to hit us" answered the Marine with a shrug, surprised he would defend the NYPD Captain. "Just in case, move your people to the east side, we know our center is under pressure and falling back, if they take us by surprise then we'll be FUBAR." Nodding, the Pilot turned and left, leaving just the Punisher and the drunkard for him to babysit.

"I hope she knows what she's doing, the IMC is no joke" murmured Barker, the first coherent, almost sober sounding, words Frank could recall hearing from him. The ACE founder noticed the Marine staring at him and smiled weakly before continuing. "I know that better than anyone, unlike everyone else in the Militia, I haven't just fought IMC…I used to fight for them."

Now, Barker had the Devil Dog's undivided attention, "No shit?" asked Frank gruffly, getting a sad nod as the old Pilot looked down longingly at his flask but didn't take a drink. "What happened?" pried Castle slowly, taking care to appear uninterested as he repositioned his GPMG on a desk, extending the bi-pod as he pulled up a chair and settled back in behind the FN Machine Gun.

Barker let out a long sigh and finally took a sip of liquid courage as he recalled the story. "It must have been 17…no, 18 years ago now, near the end of the Titan Wars" he began, "back when I was a feisty punk like the Kid is now, Co…the Marauder I mean. This was the first time Titans were used in combat, until then they had just been kept in the core worlds, but we were shipped out to the Frontier for 'peacekeeping' or whatever bullshit story the brass fed us" he explained bitterly.

Frank got a bad feeling in the pit of his gut, his own experiences in Afghanistan beginning to rear their ugly heads in the back of his mind as the salt and pepper haired man continued. "Us kids, we thought it would be an adventure, we were invincible, the heroes who could do no wrong" he said as he triumphantly raised his flask before taking a swig, "what fucking fools we all were." Now, Castle wasn't even trying to hide his interest as he listened intently to what the older man was saying. "Most of the time was spent just doing the same shit we had been, drilling, training, maintenance, running the sims. That was until one day, when we finally got the call that they wanted us out to support an infantry company looking for Militia insurgents on some planet or other…I can't even remember what it was called" he admitted shamefully. "Seemed like a simple op, we'd touch down a klick outside the colony and roll in, the infantry would sweep and look for contraband or any signs of hostile activity, and then we would leave."

"But it wasn't that simple" interjected Frank, it wasn't a question.

Barker only grimaced before he revealed what happened next. "Everything went smooth, just like we had trained. The colonists didn't put up a fight, not like there was much they could do, and we gave the green light for the infantry to come in. But they didn't just search for contraband, they looted the whole settlement, some of the colonists were probably raped, a bunch were executed for no reason as far as I could tell."

Frank raised an eyebrow, "You didn't do anything?" he asked with only a hint of condemnation in his tone.

"I asked if they had found anything, was told that they found guns in a bunch of the homes and that was how things were" he replied, his voice shaking as the hand without his flask clenched tightly, "and like the fuckin' moron I was…I believed them" he finished. With a deep breath, he finished, "we never fired a shot, but the ones that weren't killed were rounded up by the grunts while the settlement was burned."

There was a pregnant pause in the room before Barker finished recounting his tale, "The next week I found out that the settlement we went to had discovered a Titanium ore deposit not too far from where it was, the IMC was already making plans to set up a mining operation, we were just there to remove the settlement to clear the way for them, the commander in charge sold off all the stuff they looted and that went into his own pocket" explained Barker. "I kept seeing the faces of the women they dragged off or the kids they put in handcuffs or the men they shot and left lying where they died…what was I supposed to do?" he asked as he finished off the last of the contents of his flask before throwing it angrily across the room.

Frank understood all too well, his last tour in Afghanistan had been under a CIA operation called 'Cerberus' that hunted down remaining Taliban and Al-Queda that were still in the country, only the man running it was corrupt. His goal was to establish a black market operation trading in drugs, weapons, and anything else people were willing to pay for, and he used Frank and the other SOCOM soldiers under his command to take out his business competition or anyone who threatened to expose him.

When Frank found out how he had been used it had prompted him to don a vest adorned with the emblem of the unit he used to lead and begin his campaign as 'The Punisher'. Only recently had he finished completing his payback on the head of Cerberus, Bill Rawlins, but even then he had needed help. Hearing that the IMC commanders had their men commit even worse acts than he had in Afghanistan, his face tightened and a switched flip in his head as he knew what he was going to do when he finally met the IMC.

"Punish them."

"Golem Lead: Pickle! Pickle!" called out one of the fighters overhead on the radio as Yuri watched the pair of jets turn and bank away. The specks that fell from them slowly grew in size until they disappeared behind a skyscraper a few streets away until a massive plume of smoke and fire erupted from where the bombs hit, shaking the building Yuri was standing on as she looked down at the streets below. The asphalt was littered with bodies and strewn with debris as the Captain continued forwards slowly, keeping an eye out for any signs of activity as she crept closer to where the Sable position had been, thought it was eerily quiet.

"Icepick!" she yelled out as she kept her rifle ready, only to get no response, "Icepick!" she called out again and waited for the countersign. After thirty agonizing seconds, she let out a nervous breath and dropped down to street level and dashed across the street to the building that should have been full of Sable's soldiers. "Icepick" she challenged again before slowly opening the door, "Oh my god" she breathed as she took in the sight.

The walls were redecorated with bullet holes and blast shadows while the floors were slick with blood. Slowly stepping over the bodies as she continued forward into the dimmed hallways, her night vision automatically activated to cast an eerie green filter over her entire view. Pushing further in, she only found more horrors inside what had been, in a twist of grisly irony, a butcher's shop.

Before the counter was a killing ground as IMC troopers came in the door into the waiting Sable man near the cash register, but he had been blown to bits by a grenade, his arm having been ripped off by the shrapnel. Past that had been the hallways that were filled with spent bullet casings and blood smears, the wounded being dragged to safety through where she now tread. Following the trail, Yuri continued through the still silent shop until she reached the large freezer and looked inside, the contents of her stomach lurching up at the sight, only for her to force them back down through sheer willpower. Several Sable mercenaries were inside, their armor partially removed, and their bodies impaled on the meat hooks inside, hanging limp with blood pooling on the ground beneath their dangling feet. "Holy shit" she breathed out as she slowly made her way between the rows of at least a dozen corpses, all staring at her with dead eyes.

But as she neared the exit on the opposite side, she heard a gurgle and swung her rifle around to the source, a trooper who had his arm outstretched towards her, blood dripping from his lip as he mouthed the words 'Help me'. Immediately, Yuri slung her rifle over her shoulder and moved to see what she could do, "Don't worry, I got you" she assured automatically, though they were empty words. "Stop struggling, I'm going to see about getting you down" she commanded, thankfully, the trooper complied and became still, though his eyes were still frantic and wide with terror.

Unfortunately, the man's situation was even worse than at first glance, a bullet had destroyed his knee and he would be unable to walk, meaning Yuri would have to carry him out. But the Captain would not leave him like that, and so she placed a hand under each armpit and spread her feet before saying, "I'm going to lift you off, it's going to hurt" she told him bluntly before whispering, "I'm sorry." When the man nodded in understanding, Yuri mentally prepared herself, "on three. One…two…three" she grunted as she lifted with all of her exo assisted strength. Slowly, and with a sickening sound, the man came up, screaming in gurgling cries all the way, until he was all the way off, and Yuri dropped him down as carefully as she could manage. "I got you, I got you" she assured as she turned him over to inspect the wound, applying pressure with one hand as she reached for her first aid kit with the other.

But before she could grab the kit, she could feel his pulse fade until it was gone completely. Looking down sadly, Yuri turned him back over and closed the man's eyes, the only dignity he had experienced in over an hour. "Damn it" she cursed bitterly before her attention was grabbed by the sound of muffled voices.

"So what? These guys have been moaning and wailing since we put them up there" were the first words she could clearly make out. "Why does one guy screaming before he kicks the bucket mean we have to go back here?" Watanabe's teeth ground together as she was about to unsling her rifle before thinking better of it and extending the twin wrist mounted blades instead, adrenaline and rage coursing through her veins.

Pressing herself into the wall next to the doorway, she waited for the IMC soldiers to enter. "We gotta come back here because if one of them got down then Blisk's merc wants them to go back up" returned the other as they both came in, immediately focusing their attention on the body laying on the ground. "Just like that, see, I told you it wasn't impossible" said the second casually as they came in the freezer, the only light coming in being from the open doors on either end of the room.

As the one in front reached the corpse and bent over to grab hold of it, Yuri struck, slicing the trail trooper's throat and letting the body fall as the first whirled around to get a punch in the jaw as his back slammed into the wall and he fumbled with his gun. Without remorse, the Captain swung down and sliced the man's hand off clean at the wrist as his rifle fell to the ground.

Following up, the blades were driven into the shoulder joint of the other arm, causing it to hang limp and useless while Yuri finished him with an uppercut. With cold efficiency, Watanabe used the blades to carve up his armor, ripping it off and letting it fall to the floor before retracting the blades. Then, ignoring the protests and squirms of the IMC soldier, Yuri used her exo skeleton to give her the strength needed to lift the man up and drop him down on the now empty hook formerly occupied by the Sable trooper.

Stepping back, she watched the man struggle uselessly, but felt no pity nor remorse. In fact, she felt just.

Inside the Command and Control center on Roosevelt Island, the scene was an odd mix of frantic radio work and eerie calm as those inside were reduced to spectators of the scenes that were playing out on the numerous screens and over the radios. As soon as she was put in this new position, DeWolff knew she would be more stressed, but never had she imagined she would be put through the ringer like this. With Sable's professionals handling the seemingly unending stream of updates, reports, and desperate calls for help, the acting Commissioner found herself entranced by a feed from the FLIR camera from a drone overhead.

Against the dull grey background, Jean could see the bright white heat signatures of the IMC troopers scampering around like ants. The Sable position looked like an angry hornets' nest, the laser bolts descending on the white human like shapes and splashing against the cars, buildings, and concrete. She could hear one of the radio operators speaking to the position indicated on the monitor. "Delta 3 Hotel, fire mission: grid KL 177 683, enemy infantry in the open, danger close" called the trooper on the front lines frantically as the IMC pushed in.

"Roger, Delta 3 Hotel, confirm fire mission, R, F, DPICM in effect, three rounds, out" returned the controller coolly. Seconds crawled by as the mission was relayed to the battery. Biting her lip, DeWolff watched as the mortars exploded above the streets in puffs of white, raining anti infantry fragmentation cluster munitions down onto the streets. The indusial explosives were proximity fused, detonating about 3 meters above street level like lethal firecrackers. Once the nine shots had all exploded, the advance had been halted, quite literally, dead in its tracks, the still warm bodies of the IMC soldiers visible on the IR camera.

"Quite a sight isn't it" stated an eerily calm voice behind her, whirling around; she was met with empty air until she looked down to see the bald-headed Professor, seated in his wheelchair. "Out of all our vast array of nightmares" he began before nodding towards the screen showing the effects of the mortar fire, "these are the ones we choose to make a reality and then we inflict them upon our fellow man. Disconcerting, do you agree?" Jean had turned back and nodded absentmindedly, finding another showing the feed from a traffic camera as the Wolverine tore into a group of machines, slicing and dicing to frightening effect. "He was meant to be a weapon too, another nightmare. But now he is trying to find his own path" he informed sagely, with a tinge of sadness.

"I still can't believe it" she admitted lowly, "a month ago it was small time crime, a week after that it was a gang war, the next it was domestic terrorists, then a WMD threat, and now…this." The blonde shook her head, "will it ever end?" she asked finally, not at all expecting an answer.

"Someday, I believe, yes, it will end" returned Xavier confidently as Jean turned to look at him, but he had that same unreadable expression on his wizened features. "I have faith in humankind, to be better, to overcome the baser instincts. Their fear, their prejudice, their hate" he listed off steadily. "I created the X-Men so that they can be persuaded to give up those things in regard to mutants. Eventually, I believe they will give up those things in regard to each other."

DeWolff pondered the words in silence before turning to look down the man. "And what" she began lowly, "makes you believe that?"

For the first time, he craned his neck up to meet her inquisitive gaze, "The most potent force in the world Ms. DeWolff" he said with a small smile, "Hope."

It wasn't hope that was fueling Yuri as she crawled along a rooftop; she was continuing to head northwards. Coming to the edge, she peeked over and took stock of where she was, three blocks behind the initial line and she still hadn't found where the Sable International forces had fallen back to. This was a problem, if the IMC swung around then they could very easily outflank the NYPD and encircle them. Looking down at the group of IMC soldiers that had paused at an intersection. Pulling back slightly, Yuri turned on her radio, which up to that point she had kept off to avoid the possibility if the IMC tracking her, and hailed the Punisher.

That was something she never thought she'd ever do.

"Castle, do you read?" she whispered lowly, still wary of any patrolling IMC squads or drones. "This is Watanabe; I need you to start pulling everyone back. Do you copy?" She asked as she watched a pair of jets streak overhead, low enough she could feel the rumbling from the engines.

"Solid copy" returned the Marine gruffly, "I'll pass the word to have the blue bloods pull back to Rally Point Bravo. ETA: 40 minutes." The procedure to that would have been a mix of the streets and subway lines, and it went without saying that everyone moving back would be horribly exposed during such a move. If the IMC hit them while retreating, then it would be a one-sided slaughter.

Creeping forwards once again, she saw an IMC squad split off from the group, but they weren't heading north towards the Sable lines, they were heading west, towards the NYPD flank. "You might not have that long" she alerted quickly before making a split second decision, "I'm going to buy you some time. Find Barker and have his shooters head this way and harass the IMC, slow them down and play for time" she ordered coolly.

There was a momentary pause over the line before the Punisher answered, "Understood. I'll help as best I can and…good luck out there, Captain." Yuri's eyebrows quirked up at the words, or more specifically, the modicum of respect in their tone. The contempt Castle had when speaking previously was gone, replaced with an understanding that they were on the same side and facing the same evil and doing so while standing shoulder to shoulder. "Semper fi."

"Celer, Silens, Mortalis" she replied before switching her radio off and regulating her breathing as she looked through the scope on her rifle, scanning the soldiers down below to look for who she would pick off first. Her crosshairs finally settled on one man wearing an officer's cap and barking out orders directing the others to head west as he scribbled something on the side of a cab. Steadying her breath, Yuri could feel the distinct rumble of more approaching jets and waited, feeling them get closer and closer until they were just about to pass overhead and gently eased back on the trigger.

Right as they shot past, the sharpshooter took her shot; a single 7.62mm slug sliced through the air and pierced the top of the officer's skull, exiting just above his brain stem. The man was dead before he hit the floor, and the others around him immediately scattered as they looked for the source of the shot, some even fired their own weapons in every direction, frantically trying to retaliate. One of those firing had the massive particle shields, but unfortunately for him he was facing the wrong way and it would do him no good. Watanabe's next round went in just under his shoulder blade and nicked his heart, leaving the trooper to writhe around on the ground as blood filled his lungs.

The downside was that the IMC troopers now had a general idea where their assailant was, fire streamed up at the building Yuri was perched atop as she ignored it and searched for another target. "You" she whispered to herself as she saw a man produce a rocket launcher and point it in her direction, her shot arriving on target and drilling a hole clean through his forehead as he pulled the trigger. The rocket shot errantly into the sky as the Captain decided to relocate, retreating to the opposite side of the roof before activating her cloak and dropping down to the patio of a restaurant.

On street level, a squad of IMC soldiers was entering the building as Yuri swapped her rifle for her revolver and waited until all but the last had entered before making her move. Leaping down, the man only noticed her descending on him when the jump kit hissed and looked up just in time to bet a boot to the face that drove him to the ground before the Ripper was driven through his neck to sever his spinal cord as Yuri pressed herself into the brick. As bullets poured out of the doorway, the Captain grabbed one of the tear gas cannisters she had on her hip and pulled the pin, yellow vapor began to leak out as she tossed the grenade inside and waited.

The gunfire soon died down, replaced by coughing and cursing as Yuri triggered her cloak and swept into the room. With a harsh crack, the .357 dispatched the first trooper nearest the door as the one closest to Yuri tried to respond by clubbing her with his weapon, but with a gas mask built into the Wraith kit, she was easily able to sidestep the blow and trip him as she fired at a third, planting two shots in his chest as he fell to the floor. The fourth and final soldier was still coughing at her feet as she turned the gun to him and put another round through his skull.

Before making good her escape, she decided to leave the IMC a parting gift based on a trick Cooper had used. Yanking a grenade from the dead man's vest, she pulled the pin, ensuring the 'spoon' was still down as she rolled the body over and place the grenade in such a way the spoon was held down by the weight of the soldier. Just as she finished, she looked up to see that the IMC had come in from the opposite side and shot the first one in the doorway, winging him in the shoulder as she activated her cloak and broke contact.

Safely out of the building and across the street, she heard a muffled explosion as she began ascending another building and prepared to repeat the whole thing.

"Come on! Let's GO!" barked Castle as the cops jogged behind him, his deep baritone prompting them to pick up the pace. Despite the fact that he was carrying a 22 pound machine gun and its equally heavy ammo, he was the only one among the group that wasn't breathing heavily. "Across the street! Double time!" he ordered as he lay prone at the corner and readied his Mk 48, ready to lay down suppressing fire if any trouble came across them.

Looking back, he saw some of the Officers lagging a bit and instantly got on their case. "C'mon assholes, your captain is out there risking her life to buy you time to get out of here, don't waste it!" he growled. Getting the message, they sprinted across the street to join the others, it seemed that this Captain Watanabe was liked and respected by the rest of the Force, and Frank could begrudgingly admit that he understood why. She led from the front and did what had to be done, traits even the Punisher found admirable.

Still, he had his doubts about if she was up to the task, so he was pressing the others to move as fast as they could. At the very least, she did have a little bit of help in the shape of four veteran Pilots who, unlike their commander, seemed capable and focused. "Alright" slurred Barker as he staggered up, at least he was being useful by humping Franks AT4 in addition to his own personal liquor and a sidearm. "We're about halfway done; my guys are saying the IMC are starting to move this way in force. They could be here any…"

Whatever he was going to say was cut off by the distinct chatter of automatic weapons as bullets snapped past Castle's position. Reflexively, he squeezed the trigger of his LMG; the Belgian GPMG roaring to life as it began to chew threw the disintegrating link belt. Every eighth round was a tracer, leaving a lime green trail as it arced down the road as Frank swept the gun from side to side. Spent brass and links began to pool on the right side of the gun as he kept up the fire, covering the NYPD that had to now cross the street under fire. "What are you waitin' for ladies! The Moonshine is on the other side!" hollered Barker as he waved his pistol around, prompting the next bunch of Cops to sprint across the road.

Castle kept the trigger hard down as he ran through the last of the belt, yanking the charging handle back, he threw open the top cover as steam wafted from the barrel from the continuous firing. As the Punisher placed a fresh 100 round belt in the feed tray the IMC kept up their assault, slowly advancing towards the Marine. "I'm not dead yet assholes" grunted Castle as he chambered the first 7.62 NATO cartridge and hefted his gun to a concrete barrier of a dismantled Sable checkpoint and set up again just as a group of IMC Grunts broke cover and advanced up the street right into the Punisher's killing zone.

In one 5 second burst, the Mk 48 consumed half the fresh belt as it shredded the troopers where they stood, the barrel beginning to glow a soft orange as more shots came back at him, forcing him to duck behind the barrier. A form clumsily stumbled into cover alongside the Marine only for Frank to discover it was Barker. "You got the right idea pal!" whooped the ex-Pilot as he stood, flask in one hand and pistol in the other as he stood and snapped off a few unaimed shots while taking a swig, "Come and get me you sober sons of bitches!"

Castle grabbed the man by his arm and ripped him off his feet as he dragged him back down into cover as a piece of concrete was torn off by the return fire. "What the fuck are you doing?" roared the Marine as Barker gave him an indignant look and shrug, "Just stay the hell down!" ordered the Punisher as he set the GPMG back up and got back to it.

Even now with support coming in from behind him as Cops that crossed lent their own guns to holding back the IMC advance, Frank's mind was screaming that this was a bad position and if he stayed here, he would be overrun and killed. But if he abandoned it then the NYPD counting on him to hold here would be run down like dogs. Emptying the remainder of the belt to keep them suppressed, he ducked down to reload as a mechanical clanking began to echo off the buildings while Castle went through the arduous process of reloading the FN machine gun. "Specters!" called out Barker as he fired his pistol at them, the machines advancing up both sides of the street.

Laying on his stomach and then rolling out from the barricade, the Punisher cut loose with a devastatingly accurate burst that tore through the metal legs of the robots. But they continued to claw towards his position with just their upper limbs, some spraying blue tracers at the pair. While their attention was focused on the near side, neither put fire towards those on the far side as more of the advanced Mechanical Infantry pressed forwards toward the defenders.

The first indication Frank had that they were in trouble was when a shot slammed into the side of his vest, slicing through the Kevlar and grazing him as he whipped his head around to the source. "Fuck" he snarled as he twisted around to bring the gun to bear, firing from the hip as the first Specter staggered from the impacts before finally falling over sparking and full of holes. More were coming to replace it as the Punisher got to his feet and advanced with the -48 at his hip, firing short bursts at any white machine that exposed itself.

While his brash action enabled the last of the policemen and women to cross the street and evacuate, it also focused all of the considerable IMC firepower directly on him. The first shot hit his plate and was ignored as he pushed forwards, employing a 'Walking Fire' tactic as a second round slammed into his back. The rear armor plate took it but staggered the Marine as the third and fourth hit his side, one only grazed him, but the second tour a four inch long gash in his back as he spun and fell to the concrete, smashing his face into the hard surface.

Through the concussion addled haze, he could hear the machines advancing as he rolled on his back and tried to gain his bearings, only for a mechanical foot to come down on the skull emblem on his chest. At long last, his vision cleared as he made out the form of the Stalker standing over him as he tried to get up, only for the foot to press him further down as the featureless face glared down at him. Grabbing the machines leg, Frank twisted it to no effect, and it took aim with its strange weapon.

As Frank's vision began to darken while he struggled uselessly, he frantically searched for some way to escape, but it was a losing effort. Before he could come up with anything, a bullet impacted the 'head' of the machine and obliterated it, leaving a sparking stump of wires as the Stalker collapsed atop Frank. Coughing as air rushed back into his lungs, he reached out and grabbed the sleek sub machine gun and began spraying it at the machines standing over him, combined with the unknown sharpshooter, they were all felled in short order until the Punisher was surrounded by smoking and smoldering wrecks.

Throwing away the empty weapon, the Marine then focused on getting the ruined machine that was pinning him to the ground off him, but despite using all of his strength couldn't get himself free. Mustering everything he had for one last effort, he let out a roar as he pushed with all of his strength, but the thing barely budged until it he moved it an inch and felt of search of hope. With renewed fury, he pushed as he felt the machine seemingly get lighter until he managed to throw it off.

But another figure was standing over him, but this was no machine. The form fitting green gear showed the curves of a woman, and the six goggled mask told Frank exactly which woman. "Thanks for the assist Captain" he grunted as she extended a hand and helped him to his feet. "You run into much trouble?"

"Nothing I couldn't handle" assured the woman as Frank retrieved and reloaded his machine gun, "but there are more heading this way. How are the evacuations?" she asked as she reloaded her own rifle.

Checking his wounds, Frank took stock of his remaining ammo, two belts left including the one in the gun, but he still had his grenades. "Almost finished, everyone is already north of here, we should probably be heading that way too…" he began, only to be cut off by a terrifying sound from up the road. The warbling mechanical roar echoed menacingly off the buildings as he saw Yuri go rigid. "What the fuck was that?"

"You don't want to know" responded the cop as she grabbed his arm, "Run!" she barked as Frank saw the source charging straight at them. The 10 foot tall robot moved faster than a machine of that size had any right to, barreling down the road. "Split up" ordered Watanabe as she veered right, and Frank sprinted into cover behind an abandoned car to his left. Turning back, he saw the cop had used her jump kit to move vertically, running on a perpendicular surface with surprising speed.

But the machine, which Frank now recognized from the briefings as a 'Reaper', wasn't about to let her go that easily, skidding to a stop and extending both hands. Orbs of blue hot plasma shot out, splashing across the building, melting the brick and stone where they impacted as the Captain leapt across the street, twisting around in mid air so that she was running back towards the machine before jumping back to the original side, firing her rifle from the hip as the poorly aimed shots bounced harmlessly of the heavy composite armor.

But the bold move gave the Punisher an opening to act, bringing the big FN to bear on the central joint weak point and cutting loose with a long burst. Armor piercing .30 caliber rounds tore into the exposed circuitry and mechanical components at the core of the IMC reaper. Despite the pain he was dishing out, the Punisher was unable to put the mechanized beast down and it turned to him, hands glowing an ominous blue. Castle's eyes widened before he turned and sprinted away, still hefting the 20 some odd pounds of machine gun. Not daring to look back, he could hear the shriek of the energy projectiles and feel the heat as they streaked by and he dove behind a corner.

Catching his breath, he noticed the Reaper was no longer focused on him and popped out to reengage, firing the gun accurately from the shoulder, stitching bursts up and down the Reaper's height. As the machine turned around again he was forced to duck into cover and heard his earpiece crackle to life, "Castle, you got something that can kill this thing?" asked Yuri.

"Yeah" he answered as he reached back reflexively for his AT-4 before realizing that Barker had it. That didn't mean he was entirely out of options however, "I got a pair of thermobaric grenades but I can't get close enough to use them," he answered as he put his last belt in the Mk 48. A flicker behind him caused him to draw his 1911 and turn around to find the Captain there, hand held out expectantly. "Make 'em count" grunted the Marine as he handed the two red spheres to the Cop.

The woman jumped up, bouncing from wall to wall before shooting out across the street, blazing away with her suppressed rifle to draw the attention of the Reaper before cloaking, giving Frank his opening as he moved out, advancing forward and firing in short bursts. Walking his shots towards the central optic, the Punisher earned his moniker as Yuri made her move and came in from up above, one of the sticky incendiaries primed and ready.

Only this time the robot had learned, spinning back and slapping the woman away as the device fell to the ground and burned blindingly white hot. Castle watched the woman's limp form cart wheeling through the air before the Reaper turned back to him. Diving behind a car as blue plasma streaked overhead and Castle pressed himself against the metal, only for the machine to lift the car and toss it down the street like it was a toy, leaving the Marine totally exposed.

But, miraculously, the drunk inserted himself back in the fight as a flash caused Frank's eyes to reflexively snap towards the source. The unguided High Explosive Anti-Tank rocket streaked straight and true but was just slightly off target. If the rocket had hit dead center then it would kill the Reaper, but as Frank heard the distinct hiss of the molten copper jet and saw the smoke clear, the Reaper was still upright. Still, the effects were devastating as the rocket blew the machine's left arm completely off.

A blue blur overhead caught his attention as the damaged Reaper staggered, enabling Yuri to come down atop it and plunge her Ripper blades into the top of the machine as it tried desperately to buck the Captain off to no avail. Slamming the final thermobaric into the top armor and leaping away as the device went to work, turning the top armor into slag as it dripped down and tore through the internal components as the machine began to short out.

Watanabe leapt through the air and collided with Frank as the pair rolled across the ground until coming to a stop and looked towards the wreck of the Reaper as it continued to burn to a crisp. "Not bad" grunted Castle as Yuri pushed herself up.

"Don't get any funny ideas" deadpanned the Cop as she helped him to his feet and looked around to see the missing man stagger past the smoking hulk, flask in hand.

Seeing the Cop and Marine giving him an odd look, he raised the flask and called out "I'll drink to that!" before downing the contents of his flask.

Cooper's Logbook – Apex Predators

For one reason or another, Titan Pilots often work for mercenary bands on the Frontier. For the most elite Pilots, this is the best way to get a hefty paycheck while offering a greater level of autonomy than if they were a part of the IMC, Militia, or similar group. Dozens of outfits have popped up over the years, willing to take the risk on the massive costs involved in purchasing, outfitting, and maintaining a force of Pilots and their Titans, and their degree of success is as varied as the men and women who formed these groups.

Unsurprisingly, these groups often had the most formidable Pilots among their ranks, offering fortune, a challenge, and almost guaranteed opportunities to test a Pilots mettle. It's not surprising that the SRS was formed with the aid of many mercenaries, and the Marauder Corps in particular took a lot from these Pilots for hire. The regulations are looser and more relaxed, enabling Pilots to operate as they see fit, leading to a very individualistic mentality among those in its ranks, all the way down to the way each Pilot customizes his or her own equipment. At the end of the day, Commander Briggs is the one who made it work, demanding discipline in the field, if not off it. The men and women of the Marauder Corps may act like freelancers, but all fight for a common cause.

If the Marauder Corps fight for a cause, the Apex Predators fight for themselves. Of all the mercenary groups operating on the Frontier, none demands more respect, or instills more fear, than the Apex Predators. Fighting solely for the highest bidder, they are brutal, ruthless, and effective. Nothing is given higher priority than their paycheck, not a cause, not their employer, and not even their fellow Apex Predators. Well…that might not be strictly true, some may value pride, at least Sloane probably did before I killed her. But the epitome of that mentality that defines the outfit is the man at the top, South African born Kuben Blisk, who wouldn't even finish me off because he had fulfilled his contract to deliver the arc and had no reason to waste a bullet on killing a potential recruit.

That's one of those moments you don't forget, when you're dead to rights and the man standing over you doesn't pull the trigger, all it would take to change that were it to be put in his contract. As the man himself says, "you kill me, you're better. I kill you? Then I'm better."

Well Mr. Blisk, I'm hoping we get to find out who's better.

Closing Notes: That was, admittedly, one of the shorter chapters. The way this is going to go is to have each group rotate into the spotlight, this was the right, leaving the left and center to be covered in the next two chapters. I am genuinely curious as to thoughts about having the focus be on what are, in all honesty, side characters. This was more or less an experiment to see if anyone other than the main group (Matt, Felicia, and Peter) can carry a chapter, with Yuri and Frank obviously being the ones who got called on. If you played the DLC then you know some of the endgame, but I have considered the idea of bumping Yuri in particular up to lead status later (much much later) on, so I'm keen to see if you guys think she's interesting enough to go through with that or not. Review and let me know your thoughts on this or anything else.

One of the more interesting bits to write was Frank and Barker's interactions, none of what Barker talked about is canon or anything, I just wanted to come up with some other reason for Barker to be in the story than comic relief and that's the final result. Also, the talk about the Marauder Corps at the end was inspired by the American Volunteer Group (AVG), better known as the Flying Tigers...at least to those who like John Wayne movies.

Next chapter will see the IMC come across a storm, a force that is Unbreakable.

Stay Frosty, Misfit Delta out.