The Price We Pay

by CzechKris91

Things never went the way he wanted them. Sometimes it worked out, and other times it went horribly wrong. He paid the price when he decided to join his cousin in Liberty City. And now those around him would have to suffer for the choices he made. He only hoped he could keep those close to him safe when Death came to collect.

10. Out of Commission Part One

(A/N): If you haven't had the chance to read the entirety of Chapter 9, Mr. and Mrs. Bellic, it is up and ready for you!

(A/N part 2): Buckle up your seatbelts because this going to be one wild and crazy rollercoaster folks! You've been warned!

There were few times in his life where he could remember being this disoriented. In fact, he could count on his right hand the number of times he couldn't remember how he got somewhere and the confusion that followed while his brain worked to catch up. Everything felt sluggish and like he was back in the Adriatic swimming to the shores of Italy. Distant sounds of gunfire, shouts, and quickly approaching footsteps echoed around in his head causing a dull throb to form behind his eyes. His body was heavy, and he realized it was due to something pressing down on him.

"Niko-! Niko come on!" The voice seemed so far away, and he just wanted to tumble back into the oblivion that had its grip upon him. The throbbing got worse and he let out a low groan, reaching up to clamp his hands over his ears. There was a static that kept trying to drown out the noise and it created a small headache to form. He squeezed his eyes shut and slapped his hands over them, rubbing harshly, causing small dots to appear behind his eyelids.

"Niko. Now is not the time. Shit!" There was a scuffling of sorts followed by a loud bang bang.

Niko's eyes shot open to the blurry sight before him. His instincts were kicking into overdrive and the fight for survival overtook the pain that was radiating in his body. He could barely make out Bernie who was in a heated battle with someone who held a knife and pistol. There was a flurry of punches and blocks, each one trying to gain the upper hand. The blood roared behind his ears and he trembled with the way the world spun before his eyes. He tried to roll from his back to his side and his knee struck something solid. He glanced down to see a slab of concrete was partially laying over his leg. As if seeing it caused it, the stinging bite flashed through his body, and he felt the air leave his lungs in a rush.

"Ugh!" Bernie stumbled back with the force of a kick and lost his footing, tripping over a few loose stones that littered the cracked and crumbling floor. The man attacking him wasted no time and jumped him, attempting to jab his serrated knife into Bernie's chest. Bernie forced the last few ounces of strength into his arms to hold the sharp tip off of him, but he knew if he didn't shift away soon, he would lose the battle.

Niko forced himself to roll over to his side, ignoring the stabbing sensation in his leg and jerked himself free from the debris. Autopilot kicked in and he lunged at the man on top of Bernie, tackling him off to the side. Bernie rolled over to his knees once he was free and grabbed the pistol that had been knocked to the side, taking aim toward the two struggling around on the ground.

"Niko move now!" Florian shouted once he had a clear shot. Niko immediately shoved off the person and stumbled into another large slab of concrete and stone, slumping down toward the ground in pain. The gunshots rang out and forced Niko to cover his ears at the discomfort it caused him. His vison swam briefly and darkened before clearing back to the scene around him. He sucked in air greedily and felt the burn all the way down his throat to his lungs.

"Shit. Hang on." The Serbian was easier on his brain than the distant shouting in English and Russian he could make out. There was a heavy fog that hung around in his mind and it was getting difficult to stay focused. He blearily looked up as Bernie sluggishly moved over to the unmoving body and shot once more, the body jerking at the impact of the bullet, ceasing the breathing he could make out. Bernie was slightly hunched over, gasping for air, and he could see his arm was bleeding through the dirty and wrinkled suit jacket. He turned toward him and held a look of disgust before schooling his features.

"Fucker just wouldn't die. Let me look at that." He hobbled over to Niko and sank down to his knees in front of him, "Your leg was pinned. I was trying to free you before more of them showed up." He reached behind him and pulled Niko's assault rifle around, lifting it up over his body placing it down on the floor, bringing it closer to be within reach for protection. His pistol was slid back showing it was out of bullets and useless to them at the moment, and Bernie discarded it down next to the rifle. He let out a heavy sigh and placed his hands on Niko's leg around his knee to start inspecting it.

"What's going on?" Niko couldn't find the strength to translate or attempt to speak any other language but their own. Everything was screaming in pain and his stomach pitched violently as a new wave of agony crashed down on him. He gagged slightly and went to grab at his leg that was searing. His mind kept sliding in and out of lucid thoughts and he tried to figure out where they were and why there was a bunch of gunfire around them.

"Don't touch it!" Bernie grabbed his hands before he could clutch at the open wound, "I need to make sure it's not worse than it looks. Keep watch." Bernie's medical mind was taking over and he could tell Niko's leg had taken a rather nasty hit. He had found him pinned under a large piece of rubble by the destroyed dais. He had managed to duck under one of the large oak pews when the exterior wall collapsed into the cathedral. He at first thought it was a rare earthquake, but the distant sounds of explosions, that rapidly approached them, told him it was no earthquake. Right before taking his own shelter, he shoved at Roman and Mallorie to get into one of the aisles of pews across from him. It was the last he saw of them before coming to under a couple of pews that had been shoved together in the blast.

He jumped awake to the sound of gunfire and rolled over to grab at his own weapons. That's when he noticed Niko's rifle next to him and immediately started looking for his comrade, slinging the rifle around his body. Niko had been closer to the blast radius, along with Kate, Francis, and the IAA agent whose name he never got. He dodged bullets and falling debris, working his way to where he figured the dais to be, and where he hoped to find his friends alive. That's when he ran into a few nasty Russian's who immediately tried to shoot at him. He easily eliminated them using the rifle he had received at the hospital, emptying the magazine into their bodies. He dislodged the spent magazine and was in the middle of reloading when someone attacked him from behind, who stabbed his arm in the process. They had fought hand to hand, Bernie pulling the knife free from his upper arm and using it to slice open the throat of the man attacking him.

The sight of the blood should have repulsed him, but it didn't. The gurgling should have made his skin crawl, but it didn't. The way the body twitched before going still should have made him sick, but it caused a smirk to tug at his lips.

He ignored the pull of his stab wound and reloaded his rifle before moving on toward the smoking debris pile. For being almost the middle of the day, it was slightly dark inside the partially destroyed church. He blamed the fires that continued to burn around them, making black smoke billow up to block out the sunshine from above. He neared where he last knew Niko to be and saw that most of the raised platform and floor in front of the dais had collapsed into itself and left a large sunken chasm that was backfilled with rubble from the ceiling and stone arch way that held the second floor up. He panicked at the sight of it and called out hoping to hear someone respond, silently praying that no one had been crushed in the collapse. Instead, his shout alerted more enemies to where he was, and he had to take cover from the gunfire.

Where he ducked into happened to be where Niko was laying unconscious. Between returning fire and dropping those attacking him, he tried to wake his friend, calling his name to rouse him. He was running low on ammo and could use an extra person to help fight back. Dropping the now empty rifle to the ground he removed his pistol from the back of his pants and stood up killing the last person he could see. Niko had groaned and caught his attention. The distraction was enough to get himself hit. The bullets struck the bullet proof vest he had on and the pain that erupted from the impact zone caused him to stumble away from Niko.

Thankfully, his comrade had come to and jumped to his rescue. 'Some friend I must be… Coming to save him only for him to end up saving my own life again…' He shook his head clear of the thoughts and how his mind was just running away from him. It had been years since he had been in a warzone, and he was glad for the distance he placed between himself and violence. Now he was right back in the thick of things and stuck in a burning, crumbling church fighting to stay alive. He forced himself to focus on the task at hand and slightly turned Niko's leg to the side to see how deep the gash looked, "Your leg doesn't look or feel broken, but there is a rather large gash. I can cover it best I can, but it won't do to leave it for long. The blood loss will eventually catch up to you." He mumbled out immediately removing his suit jacket and knife. He wished he had more proper first aid supplies, but he would have to make do with what was available.

"Speak- Speak for yourself. Your arm looks bad." Niko blinked several times to clear his vision and noticed the large slice that was freely bleeding on Bernie's upper arm, staining the white dress shirt. His leg was starting to dully throb, and he fought to keep himself awake and alert.

"I'll get to it in a second. Be glad that none of the major arteries were severed. We'd be in bigger trouble then." Bernie cut the sleeves off of the suit jacket and worked one of them around Niko's leg, just above the knee, and tied it off firmly, "Sorry. I'm sure it hurts like hell, but I need to slow the flow of blood. We need to get out of here- or at least get to a safer space. I don't trust the floor we are on." He glanced up to see Niko slightly nodding off, "Hey!" He lightly patted his cheek to get him to refocus.

"Sorry! Sorry. I can't seem to snap out of it." He reached up to his head and rubbed at his temples. He closed his eyes and tried to recall what was going on. He could remember parts of the ceremony. Listening to Roman speak of his love for Mallorie, watching as they happily embraced and began to walk down the aisle, newly married… then… "KATE!" he jerked forward off the concrete he was resting against and looked around him wildly. He needed to find her now. His heartrate skyrocketed and the adrenaline washed away the immediate pain that was keeping him immobile. He tried to shove Bernie away from him and get to his feet, only to falter and slump back down to the floor.

"Calm yourself! And keep your voice low!" Bernie hissed at him, grabbing Niko's rifle next to them, and turning to look back the way he came hoping that no one heard them. "This place is a damn warzone. Too many people want us dead. We need to fight our way out of here. I haven't found anyone else yet. And from what I can tell there is more fighting going on around us." He gripped the front of Niko's suit jacket and lightly shook it to get him to see reason. The occasional gunshot would ring out around them, shouting in multiple languages would follow, and then the noise would start up again. "We need to be careful. I only have so much ammo." He glared at his comrade hoping to keep him in line.

"Help me up. We have to find the others." Niko's demeanor shifted back into old habits and he closed off the worried part of his brain. He would find Kate and his cousin- they would be okay, and he would kill whoever dared threaten them. He was starting to remember bits and pieces of what took place to cause them to end up in their current situation. There was some kind of explosion or earthquake. His mind replayed what it could recall, and he was as starting to piece it all together quickly. He sucked in a deep breath and immediately regretted it. The smoke was thick in the air and he coughed harshly. "Fuck!"

"Take it easy Niko. This place is on fire and falling apart around us." Bernie started to pat his back to help with the coughing fit, "I don't know how well you will be able to walk on your injured leg, but we need to try." The movement of his arm caused him to realize he had yet to tend to his own wounds. He placed the rifle down in Niko's lap and went to work on bandaging his bleeding arm. 'Won't be any good in battle if I injure myself further…'

"Do you know what happened?" Niko forced himself to slow his breathing and try to not inhale too much of the smoke. He figured that's why his eyes were slightly burning and he took the moment to take in his surroundings. The church was hardly recognizable. They were surrounded in random sized chunks of stone, concrete, and wood. He could smell something burning as well as some other horrid smell that wafted through the space and assaulted his nose. 'Definitely not just an earthquake. This place looks like it was blown up, not shaken apart.'

"Some kind of explosion, there is too much fire for just an earthquake. Reminds me of the nightly raids we did. Not sure what caused it yet. All I've seen is this." He gestured around them with his chin as he knotted the sleeve over his stab wound. He was starting to follow along with the same thinking as his friend- things were too far off and out of place for it to just be a random natural occurrence. He lowered his voice and went back to their native language. He wasn't sure who all could hear them, and he felt safer keeping their conversation somewhat private.

"And you haven't seen anyone else?" Niko rubbed at his temples again as the situation was starting to settle over him. They were in a bad spot that was slowly getting worse the longer they stayed put. He was trying to not focus on how panicked he felt about not knowing where Kate and Roman were. He couldn't shake the image of her terrified eyes disappearing from view as the floor gave way. His heart was hammering away in his chest and he closed his eyes trying to get himself to settle and find his center. 'Don't get carried away. She will be okay. Just stay focused on what you can control.'

"Only these assholes." Bernie gestured toward the dead body closest to them and winced as he sat up straighter on the cracked floor. His chest squeezed painfully, and he involuntarily grabbed at it. "Good thing I had this on…" His voice trailed off as he looked down to the bullet proof vest that rested over his chest, his fingers absently rubbing over the mangled metal of the bullets.

"What?" Niko cracked his eyes open to see that two bullets had impacted the vest Bernie wore. One would have been a kill shot, the other would have caused damage, but he would've lived so long as he got medical help quickly. He frowned at the sight of it and felt his anger come to life. He usually kept a decent hold on his anger, but he was starting to think it was about time to just let it consume him. To let it take over and guide him in getting everyone out and alive. The fury worked its way through his veins and dulled the pain that radiated all over his body, his hands shook where they gripped the rifle, and he felt a chill slide down his spine. No one else would be allowed to suffer today and he would be the hand that dealt the killing blow to his enemies. He was done letting things slide by. He was denied his revenge with Darko. He was almost kept from finding happiness. And he would be damned sure things started to go his way for once.

"That was closer than I thought." Bernie mumbled, completely ignoring the internal battle that his friend was having and plucked the mangled bullets from the vest. He tossed them over toward the fresh corpse and frowned. That was a close call, and he would need to be more vigilant from here on out. He may have a partner now to navigate their way around, but he was in better shape than Niko. He could at least walk and hold his own, and he was unsure how well Niko would be able to move around.

The sound of approaching footsteps caused both of them to snap to attention. They reached for their weapons and turned to where they thought the person was approaching from. Bernie grabbed the last magazine he had on him out of his shredded suit jacket and reloaded his rifle, taking aim toward the only entrance to the alcove of debris they were using as cover. He spared one glance toward Niko to see he had mirrored his actions. His features were hard set and he stared unblinking toward where the steps echoed from. The steps got closer and they slid their fingers onto the triggers of their rifles and prepared to fire.

Bernard emerged from the smoke, holding his handkerchief over his mouth, and carrying a pistol at the ready. They all stared at one another for a second trying to determine if what they were seeing was real or not.

"I seek out those who wish to do us harm and to extinguish their fire." Niko spoke out into the lull in noise, not removing his eyes from the person who stood before them. He was feeling dangerous and didn't trust anyone in this moment. He spoke the words that he knew only Bernard would remember from their oath.

"To my dying breath, I take arms with my brethren." Bernard answered back after a pause. He lowered his pistol and leaned heavily into the pile of stone next to him. He removed the cloth from his mouth and grabbed at his side where Niko and Bernie could see a fairly large red splotch forming on his dress shirt under his jacket.

"You're hit!" Bernie stood up quickly and moved toward the man who had sworn an oath to them, tossing the strap of the rifle over his shoulder, letting it fall to his side. He carefully helped him into their cover and lowered him to sit on a pew that had survived the collapse of the wall. He immediately went to work on figuring out where the blood was coming from and how bad the damage was. 'With this amount of blood, it doesn't look good.'

"It's not bad but moving around isn't helping it." Bernard answered and tried to relax back into the wooden pew, "Any survivors?" He wiped away the trail of blood from the side of his face using the handkerchief where he had a small cut. He had yanked a piece of metal rebar from his side when he woke up and he was wishing he hadn't now.

"I've only managed to find Niko." Bernie answered somewhat distracted as he picked up his discarded suit jacket and wadded it up in order to make a suitable bandage and apply pressure to the open wound.

"I killed a few people who tried to attack me. I directed those who answered me on the radio to start search and rescue and to use lethal force on anyone who was trying to attack the church. Or. What's left of it anyway." He sucked in a sharp breath when Bernie pressed the cloth to the wound firmly. 'Maybe it's worse than I thought' His body shuddered in response to the new wave of pain. He tiredly looked over Niko and Bernie for wounds and realized they weren't in perfect shape either. Things were getting more bleak by the minute.

"Do you know what happened to cause all this?" Niko struggled to get to his feet and felt his leg shake beneath him. He wasn't in horrible shape, but he wasn't sure how much longer he'd be able to carry on if he didn't get some real medical help soon. His dress pants felt damp around his knee where Bernie had patched him up and he could feel another wet spot on his other thigh. He looked down to see a piece of glass was embedded into the side of his thigh. 'Great. This is going to hurt.'

"The last communication I got was there was a natural gas main rupture down the street and was tearing a path toward the church. Then the wall exploded in on us. I came to in time to see a bunch of people rushing in through the open spaces and back door. I managed to kill some of them and link up with a few of my agents. They are still holding off the incoming enemies. I went in search of you. The radio isn't working anymore. Might be a jammer or something present." He was breathing heavily and was turning pale.

"Save your strength." Bernie encouraged, he met Niko's eyes and did his best to portray what he knew. Their friend was badly wounded, and he needed help quickly. He had found several mangled bullets embedded on the vest he wore and could only guess he had been punctured by something in the space not protected by the vest. The blood kept oozing out and his attempts at slowing it was futile. Niko tilted his head to the side slightly as if asking 'how bad' and Bernie shook his head minutely in a negative motion. Then his eyes dropped to notice the shard of glass sticking out of Niko's leg, "Niko! Don't you dare pull that out!"

Niko ignored his warning and jerked the glass free, gasping at the new pain that slammed through him. He rested his rifle against the pile of debris and removed his own suit jacket, working on removing one of the sleeves to use as another makeshift bandage, "We are sitting ducks here and we need to find the others and get to safety." His tone was flat, and it caused both Bernie and Bernard to glance at one another in concern.

"Niko. We are in no shape to fight back." Bernie tried to reason with him while tending to the bleeding wound of their other friend, regardless of how he knew it wouldn't do much to help. He knew that he was the only one without serious injuries. And while he was concerned for the rest of their friends, he had this sinking feeling that something much worse was about to happen. He was fighting with himself to keep from just sliding back into 'Florian mode' as he called it.

"Well we can't just wait for them to find us and kill us. Can you not hear the ongoing gunfire?" Niko knotted the torn off sleeve over his new leg wound and retrieved his rifle. He checked it over and flung the strap around his shoulder, "Plus I do not know where Kate or Roman are. They are the biggest target for Natalya. And I have no doubt that this is part of her plan. If we all didn't die in the blast or ensuing fire, then her soldiers will finish the job. Yes?" He dislodged the magazine and checked the count of bullets before reloading it and clicking the firing mechanism to full auto. He turned his attention toward Bernie and Bernard waiting for their answer. He would not spare another minute in his search for his cousin and girlfriend. There were more pressing matters to attend to. And whether he liked it or not, he would carry on, on his own.

Bernard was paling further in his complexion and had multiple scrapes on his face and head, his clothes were dirty and disheveled, and his side wound was turning his normally black suit darker with blood. Bernie didn't look much better. His dress shirt was mostly dirt free, but his arm that had been stabbed had turned the crisp white cloth bright red around the suit sleeve bandage. The vest had two indentions over his heart and there were a few splotches of blood on his face. Niko knew of his own injuries and what he would be capable of, but he wouldn't risk Bernard's life moving forward.

"More than likely yes." Bernard answered after a moment or two passed. He could almost sense where Niko was going in his thought process. He took over for Bernie on holding the crumpled up suit jacket to his side. He knew things were not looking good and he was not lost on what to do- or more specifically, what needed to be done. They were largely outnumbered and running low on supplies. His radio wasn't receiving signals or sending any out. The gunfire he could hear sounded to be getting closer and he knew they were running out of time. Their options were dim, and he swallowed at the realization.

His eyes met with Niko and he meticulously nodded to him with his unspoken answer. Sacrifices needed to be made and he would deal with the consequences later.

"Let's get moving." Niko turned toward the makeshift entrance and lifted his rifle into position. He fell back into what he knew and trusted, and approached on silent feet, sweeping his eyes and rifle back and forth- he would locate his girlfriend and cousin on his own. He didn't need to waste any more time, and the longer it took to set eyes on them, the more his mind wanted to slip further into his burning rage.

"Niko! Wait!" Bernie was absolutely torn. He knew Niko wasn't all there and the need to find the ones he held dear was driving him to move on, but he couldn't leave their friend to bleed out.

"Go. He will need you. I will be alright." Bernard sucked in a shaky breath and nodded toward where Niko disappeared from their sights. He would stay put and wait for help. 'If help is on the way…'

"But! Your wound? I can't leave you alone! That's against my better judgement." He frantically looked back and forth between his oath to help Niko and the more rational side that said if he left this man alone, he would more than likely die, and pass quickly.

"Go solider. Your captain needs you. That's an order." Bernard figured the only way to snap Bernie back into it would be to talk to him as if they were in a war, and really, they somewhat were at this point. If Niko was falling back into the fold, then maybe Bernie needed the same nudge. He moved his pistol to his lap and adjusted his hold on the suit jacket. Bernie turned abruptly back to him with the tone and watched as his eyes widened in stunning clarity.

"It was an honor to fight alongside you." Bernie offered before shifting his rifle back to his front. He placed a fist over his heart and thumped it twice before standing up and taking off after Niko. He felt sick leaving the man behind, but maybe he would be able to locate help for him, and at the same time, protect his friend from getting himself killed. And more importantly find the rest of his friends alive and mostly unharmed. He let go of the internal barrier and let his instincts guide him. His face dropped and he drew on the feelings and knowledge he obtained back in the wars. Florian was back.

Bernard watched them disappear from his sight and looked up toward the ceiling. His eyes landed on a statue of Jesus nailed to the cross that somehow managed to survive the destruction. It was slightly charred from the fireball that had torn through the building and he smirked at seeing it relatively unharmed. "You know. Now would be a great time for a miracle." He whispered out in the space he had found Niko and Bernie in. Gunshots rang out randomly around him and he tried his best to ignore it. His body was going into shock and he knew it. His fingers were tingling from blood loss and he was sweating, even though he felt cold. "Just watch out for them, will you?"

His phone started to ring in his pocket, and he put all his strength into answering it, it could be his only chance at getting some help. The caller ID caused his eyebrows to raise unexpectedly, "How unlike you to call…"

aaaaaa

She had never felt this tired before in her life, and for once she couldn't feel her body, or the bed she was used to sleeping in. Normally she'd blame it off on drinking too much with Packie or it was her body's way of not dying from utter embarrassment when she would have one too many while out with Niko. Her mind tried to reason with her that this was not the case. That something else had caused her to black out. But she shoved the thoughts to the side to try and get some more sleep. And for once her mind let it be.

"Katie? Katie? Where are you?" Francis called out into the darkness. He had awoken to the feel of something dripping onto his face and it got his mind racing on how he had ended up where he was. There was hardly any light to go by and his cell phone only provided a dim glow. Once he could make out some of his surroundings, he immediately recognized it as one of the many storage rooms in the basement of the church. He did a once over of his body to make sure nothing was broken or bleeding too much. Satisfied that there were only a few scrapes here and there he slowly got to his feet to try and locate his sister.

He could smell something slightly burning and knew that the longer he stayed put and underground his chances for survival grew more grim. He reached up and activated his gps distress beacon. Every high ranking member of the police force had one built into one of their stars that graced the collar of their dress shirt. With the increase in terrorist activity in the city, they had implanted this technology to help locate those that were considered high risk targets. Firefighters also had something similar on their uniform incase something happened to them when they entered a burning building. It was a distress signal of sorts and gave the rescue team a chance to locate them.

He shifted through some of the rubble that had fallen down with them. He could remember the floor giving way beneath him before everything went fuzzy. He reached up to rub at some of the wetness he could feel still on his head and brought his hand up to his face in the small light from his cell phone. His hand came away covered in blood. 'Not good…' There was a dull throb in his head, but otherwise he was fine. He took in a fortifying breath and tried to locate his sister once more. They needed to get out of there quickly. The smoke was starting to collect along the stone ceiling of the storage room.

"Kate? Come on. I need some direction here. Can you answer me? Please?" He used the wall to help guide him further into the space and away from the large pile of stone, metal, and wood that had been the cathedral floor. He turned his phone to shine the light into the room and finally could make out exactly where he was. Books lined the back wall along the dusty bookshelves. Old oil lamps were knocked over on one of the tables close to him and he went to work on lighting one. He opened the glass compartment door and adjusted the wick height in order to provide more light. He searched his pockets for a lighter. He normally didn't smoke anymore and rarely carried a lighter on him. He glanced around the table and saw a few long matches that weren't too damaged. Striking one on the surface of the table he held the flame to the wick and prayed that it wasn't too dried out or that there was enough oil to keep it going for the foreseeable future.

The wick ignited and cast light into the cramped small storage room. Francis shook out the match and discarded it to the table, quickly shutting the glass door to the lamp and placing it down to the table. "Thank God it works." He mumbled out and squinted his eyes against the bright light that now illuminated the room. He let out a long sigh once his eyes landed on the damage to the room. One side of it was in shambles- piles of broken stone and wood towered up the side of the cracked wall and disappeared into the ceiling, where they had fallen through. A large slab of stone blocked off the view of where he assumed the cathedral was.

One of the tables that was close to the pile was broken in half and he could see a hand sticking out from the crease. His heart jumped up into his throat and he rushed over toward it, noticing the feminine look to the fingers. His eyes landed on his unconscious sister and he dropped to his knees. She was on her side in between the two pieces of broken table. He could see a gash along her hairline that seemed to be slowing down in bleeding. He placed his hand on her shoulder and lightly shook her, for which he got no response.

"Okay. Okay. She is at least breathing." He could see a faint rise and fall to her body and knew she was at minimum alive. Carefully he maneuvered around the splintered table and crumbled stone to slide his arms under her body and lift her up into his arms. She fell limply against his body and he shifted her into a better hold, before moving her away from the sharp edges of the table and the stone. He gently laid her down on the cold, dirty stone floor and started to check her over for injuries. The blood from the head gash had stained the side of her face and neck and had started to seep into the cloth of her dress along her collarbone- which looked slightly out of place.

"Shit. This is going to hurt Kate. But I got to reset your arm." He whispered out once he realized that her arm was dislocated and would need to be forced back into the socket. He glanced over her body for more pressing injuries and noticed that her legs had several scratches and cuts, but nothing too deep or critical. He also noticed that her heels were missing and figured they must have fallen off when they fell through the floor into the basement. Hoping to not wake her yet, he sat her up against him and moved to where he would have the best angle to shove the arm back into the socket. He paused when a thought crossed his mind and he reached up to his gps activated star and rubbed at it.

Kate felt like her body was moving of its own accord, which was a strange sensation to her, and it forced her mind to stir. The darkness was pleasant and comforting, for there was no pain, no heartache, no fear. Just nothingness that didn't harm or help. Sounds were muffled and muted. There was no light to distract her worn out mindset. It felt oddly peaceful, but something was nudging at her. She felt something moving along her hip, sliding around her midsection and side, a sensation that triggered a couple of red flags and alarm bells. The image of the man pulling her shorts down to get his hand to her more private area flashed across her vision and all at once every nerve bloomed to life.

Pain lanced across her body in a wild blaze and every single bruise, cut, injury, internal struggle raged against her. The fight or flight feeling soared to every fiber of her being and jump started her heartbeat into overdrive. She felt the scream bubble up from her lungs before letting it tear from her lips. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire and she jerked against the hold that held her in place causing another agony filled scream to leave her breathless. Tears burned behind her closed eyelids and she forced herself to see what was going on. There was a high pitched ringing in her ears that drowned out her cries and sounds from her surroundings.

"Katie! Katie calm down! Please! It's me! Francis! Your brother!" Her terrified, pain filled scream startled him so much that he almost lost his grip on her and he overcorrected- grabbing her arms tightly, which was a mistake, as it moved her dislocated arm forcefully, causing another agonizing cry to leave her lips. He shifted off of her best he could while still trying to keep her arm tucked to her body. He didn't need the dislocation getting any worse or to cause any of her muscles to tear. He saw the stream of tears as the fell from her frightened eyes. "Katie, it's okay. I'm here. You're okay." He reasoned with her and tried to wipe some of the tears from her cheeks, one of her cheeks that was covered in blood from her head wound only smeared it worse and he slightly grimaced at the sight of it.

"Frankie?" She croaked out, looking around frantically to get her bearings. She was on the verge of hyperventilating and her body was trying to process everything rapidly. There was hardly any light where they were, and she couldn't really see anything through the tears that kept obscuring her vision. Her hands shook violently, and she clenched them shut to try and still the movement. Her shoulder was intensely hurting, and it caused her stomach to roll and the taste of bile to form in her mouth.

She thought she saw a bookshelf out of the corner of her eye and her mind attempted to lock her back into the memory of Gerry and Francis' fight that took place in the living room of their home. The brutal pummeling into Francis face and head from Gerry's fists as blood flew across the room and struck the furniture and walls. She sucked in a shaky breath and forced herself to look back to her brother to make sure he was still alive and with her. He had a little blood on his face and his hair was matted down and looked to be caked in it. Raw fear slammed to the forefront of her jumbled emotions and she barely managed to form his name when she spoke, "Frankie?!"

He could see how her eyes slightly dilated when she truly looked to him and he knew in an instant she wasn't all there with him. He dropped her arms and cupped her face and forced her to look to his eyes and turned them more toward the light from the oil lamp, "Kate. Breath with me. I can't tell you everything is okay because it's not. But I need to you to be here with me. We are at the church. There was some kind of earthquake and we fell into the basement. I think your arm is dislocated and I need to pop it back into place. You will feel slightly better once I do. Okay?" He kept his voice level and forced his own tremor down. 'Maybe she has an internal head injury and is about to go into shock on me…'

"Okay. Okay." She whispered over and over again as she forced the bile back down her throat. 'I'm at the church. He said something about an earthquake?!' Her eyes darted around the room again not recognizing it at all. Confusion won out over her panic and she turned her attention back to her brother, "Where are we? This doesn't look like the church. Where is Niko? Roman? Mal?! OhmyGod Frankie! We have to find her! She is pregnant!" Her hands started shaking again and she went to cup them together before her shoulder lit up again with pain and caused her to almost throw up at the sensation.

"Woah! Slow down there. One thing at a time, okay?" He moved with her and tucked her arm back into a more protected position, "I need to get your shoulder back into place. It's going to hurt but will stop once it goes into the socket." He kept his one hand on her injured arm to stop it from moving too much and searched his belt for something for her to bite down on. He pulled free his pepper spray bottle and removed the leather carrying case. He held it out for her to take with her uninjured arm, "You will want to bite down on something. It's not going to feel pleasant." He glanced to her face for permission.

"Just make it quick. I feel like I'm going to throw up with the amount of pain that's coming from it." She whimpered slightly when he moved around to get the pepper spray. She took the offered leather case and brought it up to her mouth, "Francis I swear you better get this on the first try." She bit down into the tough leather and closed her eyes waiting for the excruciating pain to form. She had never dislocated something before and prayed to never have it happen again.

"I'm sorry in advance." He set her up more fully and pinned her legs down with his own as he practically knelt on her lap and slightly bear hugged her. He adjusted her arm and winced at every small whimper that made it past the pepper spray case in her mouth. Once he got her arm and body into position, he took a deep breath, "I'm going to count to three. Just. Don't hit me below the belt." He smirked at her startled laugh and shoved the dislocated section back into place feeling it pop back into the correct socket.

She screamed at the sensation of her bones grinding together before the utter relief washed through her. She grabbed the front of his uniform jacket to steady the tremor that shook her whole body, as a cold sweat broke out across her skin. "Fucking hell Francis!" She let out a long breath and leaned into him. She focused on breathing and fighting the urge to throw up.

He moved off of her and pulled her into a better hug, letting her rest against him, "Yeah I know. Try doing that by yourself using just a wall. It ain't pretty." He chuckled as he remembered having to do it a couple of times when he was younger and had gotten into a fight with Gerry and or Derrick.

"I can't even imagine. Don't want to." She tucked herself into the crook of his neck and willed herself to shop shaking. The pain was still there, even if it was dull, but it was starting to subside. She felt him start to rub her back soothingly and forced the tears to stop falling, "Thank you." Her body started to cool off and she shivered at the sensation.

"No problem. Now, to answer some of your other questions. I think there was an earthquake. I think. I don't remember much once the floor gave way or really how it fell apart. I just know we woke up here in the records storage room." He glanced around the small space and grew slightly concerned at the amount of smoke that was starting to seep between the cracks of the ceiling. He couldn't smell burning wood or anything anymore, but he would need to get them moving soon.

"And how do you know we are in a records storage room?!" She untucked herself from his hug and gave him a quizzical look before looking around the room for herself. She saw the cave in where they must have fallen through, a few tables scattered around, one which held the light source, and a dirty, cobweb covered looking bookshelf. She never knew the church had lower levels to it. Then again, she only spent time in the cathedral for service and funerals. This was probably the longest duration she had ever spent in the building. Carefully she untangled herself from her brother and turned to face the bookshelf more, fascinated by the varying size of books that lined the shelfs.

"I was an altar boy a lifetime ago, remember? I used to have to look up random information for the Cardinal when he would visit. This is where births, deaths, marriages, confirmations, and various other records are kept. It's also where the collection box is kept before the deposit is filled out and dropped off to the bank." He smirked at the memories and rose to his feet, lightly shifting her to sit as comfortably as she could on the ground. He held his hands out to his sister after he adjusted his uniform and helped her to her feet. Once he was sure she could stand up on her own, he walked over to the far wall and ran his fingers along the spine of a rather large leather book. He tilted his head slightly lost in thought before moving on to a different book.

"Oh. I probably wasn't born when you were an alter boy Frankie. There are seventeen years between us. And my earliest memories of you are when you no longer wanted to be part of the church and wanted to be in law enforcement. Or something like that." She watched her brother look over the books on the shelf. There was a fairly large gap between them in age and a lot more unknown about one another. She was too young when he moved out and he stayed connected infrequently throughout her life. Only stopping in for milestone events and the unfortunate deaths that befell the family. Her body shook slightly at being on her feet and her head spun faintly. She noticed a toppled over chair by the table with the lamp and shuffled over to it to be able to get off her feet.

"I forget sometimes." He mused before finding the book he was looking for. He pulled on it and heard the loud click of the hidden door unlocking. He stepped back as the counterweight dropped and the shelf popped forward slightly. He opened the secret door and smiled at the fairly large collection chest that sat in the small hidden space. 'Still in the same place after all these years...' He moved inside the room and moved the chest away from its spot and revealed a large metal first aid kit and a couple of bottles of water tucked into a hole in the stone floor.

"Francis?" Kate called out when her brother moved into the secret room. She was somewhat surprised that he knew exactly where they were and where things were hidden. Clearly there was more to her older brother than the badge and slightly condescending attitude he held toward their brothers. Her head began to hurt, and she buried her face into her hands. She felt dirty and tired and couldn't bring herself to care about make up, hairdos, or looking presentable anymore. She could only image how bad she looked, and it only soured her mood more. Her heart thumped strongly at the thought of Niko finding her like this. 'Would he freak out? Or would he try to force me to get checked out by a doctor? I could really go for some aspirin for this damn headache…'

"Coming. There is always a first aid kit in this room because you never know what kind of crap is left on paper money and heaven forbid you get a papercut, and it was laced with some kind of drug or disease. At least that's what the pastor always said. I think it's in here for other reasons. Can't always trust what people tell you at face value. Many a time I'd find someone down here doing Lord knows what. Anyway. I need to check out that gash. It doesn't look good." He moved back into the room carrying the metal first aid box and noticed she had sat down in a chair at the table with the burning oil lamp. He shoved the hidden door closed with his foot and headed over toward his sister.

"Gash?" She glanced up between her hands to her brother before leaning on one of her hands that was propped up on the table. Her other arm tucked back toward her body as if she were scared to move it around more since it was recently dislocated. She wiped absently on her cheek trying to see if she could feel the gash he was talking about.

"Yeah…" He moved over to the table to place the metal box down on the surface with the two bottles of water. He picked up another chair that was knocked over and sat down next to her, "You don't feel that?" He cautiously pointed to the fairly large cut along her hairline. Her hair was still mostly held back into the intricate braided crown, but the few wisps of hair that framed her face was slicked down on her skin with drying blood. He tore his gaze away from the injury and opened the metal box hoping that the supplies inside had been restocked and were useable. 'Going to at least clean it up some and see just how bad of an injury it is. Then we need to get out of this room before the oxygen runs out…'

"No? How bad is it? The only thing bothering me right now is my shoulder, my wrists, and my stomach. I feel kind of weak and like I'm having an out of body experience honestly." She leaned back into the chair and studied her brother closely. The dim light in the room hid most of his injuries from her but she could still see that he had his own head wound that needed tending to. His uniform was mostly still put together, even if most of the ribbons, medals, and his badge were slightly crooked. His collar was slightly undone, and his tie was pulled loose.

"Just uh. You might be in shock or something. Let me at least clean it and make sure nothing else is worse." He scooted the chair closer to her and pulled out a clean looking cloth from the box. Just as he was about to open one of the bottles, the faint sound of gunfire echoed out to them. He paused and squinted his eyes as if it would help him recognize the sound. When the sound reached his ears again, he knew in an instant that something very wrong was going on someplace else in the church.

"Did you- did you hear that?" Kate looked around the room trying to figure out what it was. Her head still felt like it was underwater, and she figured that whatever injury her brother was about to clean was the cause of it. She glanced back to her brother who looked frozen in place. "Francis?" Her voice grated against her suddenly dry mouth and throat.

"Kate. I have the feeling what we experienced was not an earthquake…" 'The smoke, the collapse of the floor, why there isn't any major damage to this room other than what was caused in the collapse…' His mind was reeling now, and it set him on edge. His hands trembled that held the cloth and the water bottle. His sister was with him, which meant everyone else up above them was probably involved in the shooting that was now escalating in volume. He was the last line of defense for his one and only sister. That thought sent a dangerous chill down his spine. There was no way of knowing if Niko was alive or not. Or for that matter if anyone else was alive. 'Or who is shooting…'

There was muffled shouting and more gunfire, and what sounded like stones being shifted around. He looked toward the door to the room and then to the ceiling where the smoke was somewhat receding back into the cracks that littered the façade. He may recognize the room, but he was having trouble remembering how to get to this room the normal way. There was a labyrinth of halls, rooms, and even tombs where high ranking members of the church were laid to rest. He would need to figure out the safest escape route, and fast, as the noise around them continued to escalate.

"Then what?" She whispered at the panicked look Francis was now sporting. The sound was getting more intense and louder now and she shook her head to try and clear up some of the fuzziness that clouded it. It was like a television was on, set to a channel of nothing but static. She tried to clear her throat but the burn that followed caused her to cough. She grabbed one of the bottles of water and took a swing from it. The water cooled the burn, but it caused her ears to pop slightly at the change. The recognizable sound of gunfire registered in her head and immediately her heartrate quickened. She swiveled around in the chair to stare at the only door in the room and wished she could just barricade them inside to keep whoever was shooting from getting to them.

"We need to move now. We have to get out of here as quickly as possible. That's gunfire. Those damn Russian's must have attacked the church. Come on Kate. I have to get you someplace safe." He stood up quickly and dropped the items back into the first aid kit, her injury would have to wait for now. He removed his sidearm and flipped the safety off before moving back over to where they had left the pepper spray on the ground. He bent over and picked it back up, clicking it back to its rightful place on his belt, and moved over to his sister. He held his hand out to her urgently and hardened his features to let her know he wasn't kidding around.

"Francis you're freaking me. Are we not safer here?" She took his hand anyway and allowed him to haul her to her feet. The floor was cold under her bare feet and she wished that she still had her heels on. Even if they were uncomfortable at least her feet would be protected from the debris that was scattered on the floor.

"I bet that was some kind of explosion or timed demolition we experienced. That has to be it. They needed to separate and possibly kill some of us in order to get to who they are really after. We aren't safe here. They will be looking for you, Niko, Roman… Whoever they want. Fucking hell. Fuck!" Francis let go of her hand and paced back and forth in the small room, "Okay. I'll get us back to the surface using the tunnel entrance to the graveyard. Then I should be able to radio for help. No signal down here anyway. Okay. That's the plan." He was more talking to himself than he was Kate at this point, and he kept trying to run down every scenario he could. He dislodged the magazine in his pistol and counted seventeen rounds, before slamming it back in place. He cocked the gun back to seat one in the chamber and turned to face his sister, plan in place in his mind.

"So… us being down here… isn't because of a freak earthquake?" Her head slightly throbbed with the thought and she placed her hand over the gash and yelped at the burning sensation that flared to life with the touch, "What the?" She lowered her hand and saw that it came away with fresh blood. Her body trembled at the sight of the blood and she blindly felt for the edge of the table to stay upright. The static she felt in her brain intensified and forced her eyesight to obscure before clearing again.

"Leave it. We don't have the time now, we got to move. There is no way someone didn't hear you screaming earlier, and they have bound to have studied the blueprints for this place. Come on." He quickly moved toward his sister and started to guide her toward the wooden door that led to the many hallways beneath the church. He would need to rely on what he remembered of this place in order to find the right hall that would lead them toward the graveyard entrance.

"Francis just stop!" She dragged her feet and forced her body from moving forward at his insistence. She was fighting another wave of nauseous swaying and she was needing to be still to keep from blacking out again or throwing up. "There is no way someone knows we are down here! Wouldn't it be more dangerous to start moving around and possibly run into whoever wants to kill us?" She crossed her arms protectively over her body and tried not to shiver at the cold that clung to her. Everything was turning numb the longer she stood, and she shifted her focus to her feet to try and clear up the uneasiness she felt and refocus her vision.

"And staying in one place is asking for it. In case you haven't noticed there is a small bit of smoke forming along the ceiling of this room and I for one would prefer to not die in a fire or from smoke inhalation!" He pointed up toward the ceiling and turned back toward his stubborn sister. His patience would run out soon if they didn't start moving and seek out help. He wasn't sure how badly they were both injured and head injuries could lead to worse things if not looked at. He would not fail this time at seeing her to safety and making sure she was okay.

"Fine. Okay. We can go." She hesitantly moved closer to him as she noticed the smoke that seemed to curl in and out of the cracks of the ceiling. There was definitely a fire someplace and she could agree about not wanting to burn to death… or suffocate. She tried to steady her thoughts as they wanted to spiral out of control. The sound of guns was growing louder by the second and she could barely make out some shouting between the chaos. One of the voices sounded like Niko to her, but she couldn't be sure, and was probably only wishful thinking on her part. 'Please be okay Niko… Please come find me…'

"Glad we agree. Come on. I think I remember the way. Been a long time since I was down here." He turned back toward the older looking door that led to the maze of halls and rooms that laid beneath the church. Kate moved in step with him and placed her hand on his back, bunching the fabric between her fingers, as a way to keep from losing him in the darkness that would surely lay beyond the door.

"Why don't you grab the lamp? It can be extinguished quickly if we need to be hidden. At least then we don't trip over anything." He nodded toward the table they had left the lamp on. Her touch had caused him to pause and think about what they could possibly be walking in to. He knew there were only so many lights in the hall and having the lamp might help them navigate their way out. She smiled weakly to him and went to retrieve the only light source in the room.

Just then the door slammed open, causing a loud bang as it smashed into the stone wall it was attached to, causing both of them to jump terribly. A man in full tactical gear and gas mask barged into the room with a sawed off shotgun. He pointed it at Francis as he turned abruptly back to who had opened the door. Things moved in slow motion for Kate as she watched the man fire twice into Francis' chest. The blasts were deafening in the enclosed space. Francis never stood a chance to raise his own weapon to return fire before the slugs slammed into his body and forced him to stumble back into the center of the room. His hands went to his throat, the pistol clattering to the ground, and came away with blood before he collapsed backward to the cold, dirty, stone floor.

"FRANKIE!" Kate let out a terrified shriek of his name before another man emerged into the room and rolled a smoking canister into the space. Immediately her eyes started to water, and her lungs constricted painfully. She gasped out raggedly and stumbled back into the table before falling to her knees. She grabbed for her throat and wheezed with her attempts to suck in air. Kate desperately looked over to her brother who was slowly starting to have a puddle of blood form under his head from the wounds. His arms were out from his sides unmoving and she attempted to call out to him, only to have her throat tighten impossibly further. Tears rained from her eyes as the room darkened severely in her tunneled vision. The pistol was just in reach if she could just crawl toward him.

She jerked against the icy grip that was slowly trying to drag her down to the ground. The room was swaying before her eyes and she blinked through the tears to locate the pistol again. She thought she heard a sputter or gurgle from her brother, and she worried glanced his way as she forced her arms before her to scoot closer to him. Each pull of her arms caused her shoulder to twice in fantom pain from being dislocated. Her lungs were slowly being squeezed in a vice like grip and she kept fighting to take in air.

Francis body shuddered briefly before going completely still. More tears flooded her vision at the sight before her.

'Please no!' Her mind was slowly losing the battle to stay conscious and she could feel her body slowly fading from her control. She drew on every grain of strength left and sluggishly lunged for the pistol that seemed to be mocking her with the distance. Her last line of defense was the one thing she hated in the world. A weapon, designed to take life, but in her case, to save it.

The two men moved further into the room. The one who had rolled the canister into the room held up a piece of paper. He looked between it and the female who was gasping for air on the ground, slowly making her way to the only noticeable weapon in the room and nodded. The one who shot Francis moved toward her, handing the shotgun off to the other man, and kicked the pistol across the room. She tried to back away from him, but her body was completely useless to her, and she only collapsed to her back, then her world faded from view.

"You sure this is her? Looks different." The man nudged Kate's body with his foot before crouching down to get a better look. He thumbed her chin from side to side and glanced back over his shoulder to the other man.

"Positive. The boss won't be pleased if she dies before getting her hands on her." The other man tucked the shotgun under his arm and pulled a backpack around his body. He removed a second gas mask from inside the bag and tossed it over to his counterpart.

"Yeah yeah. I got this piece of ass. Just be sure he's dead before following." The man placed the mask over Kate's face and pulled a second line from his oxygen tank and attached it to the filter system of the mask. She started to breathe again immediately once the air filled the mask. Without much flare the man hauled her up over his shoulder and moved toward the open door. He gave her butt a playful slap before exiting the storage room.

The other man waited a second or two before approaching the man on the floor who was slowly bleeding out. He noticed the first aid kit on the table and silently moved over to filter through all the items before coming across a packet of instant wound dressing. He glanced back toward the door, listening for his partner, before ripping open the packet. He lowered down to be closer to the prone body and dumped the fast acting clogging agent over the wound he saw on the neck. He tucked the packet below the uniform jacket and read the name on the badge. That's when he felt the bullet proof vest that was hidden under the clothes. He pulled a folded piece of paper from a pocket on his vest and tucked it down under the packet.

"You coming?" His partner's voice called out and he abruptly turned to see if he was watching him or not. He didn't see him yet, but he probably only had a few seconds left before he was discovered. Quickly he kicked the still smoking canister away from the body to hopefully give him some air, "Just checking for a pulse. Be right there." He stood up silently and pulled his own pistol out from the holster. He aimed across the room toward the bookshelf and fired off a round. The gunshot reverberated in the small space. "On my way."

aaaaaa

"Niko! Get down!" Florian shoved Niko's shoulder down and fired off at the person who was rounding the corner toward them. Niko dropped down to his knee roughly and aimed at a second person who was approaching from the opposite direction. They had been making their way back toward where they assumed the main aisle to have been. They were hoping to find Roman or any of their other friends. And possibly find some backup.

"How many more of these assholes are there?!" Niko pushed off the ground and did his best to ignore the stinging sensation from his knee and thigh. He was losing strength with every movement and he was struggling to stay confident in his abilities. They had yet to stumble across any of their friends and it was grating against his nerves. Every time they would catch a second to breath more armed men would show up trying to kill them.

"Too many." Florian snorted and took aim as he heard shuffling close by. The rifle was tucked solidly into his shoulder and his aim never waivered with his breathing. He had succumbed to the inner voice and easily slid back into war-mode. It was taking fewer and fewer shots to drop someone, and he could feel the sickening pride starting to swell up inside with each kill. Niko lifted his rifle back up into position and joined his side in order to help eliminate whoever was heading their way.

"Woah watch it breda!" Little Jacob ducked slightly as he crossed into the line of sight of Niko and Bernie, their rifles snapped to his person.

"Jacob!" Niko lowered his weapon and quickly approached his friend, pulling him in for a quick hug, "Where are the others? Is Roman alive? Is Kate?" He clasped onto Jacob's shoulder and couldn't keep the slight shake from his voice. He was starting to get more and more concerned for everyone. They had to zigzag through the debris field and hadn't come across anyone except for people trying to kill them. His anger was starting to become borderline out of control and if he didn't find them soon, he was going to snap.

"Most of everyone is up by the front. Massive standoff with the Rascalov men. I went in search of you since Roman was threatenin' to come after you." Jacob nodded to the two men and started to search his jacket pockets for extra ammo to give them, "Brought some goods with me." He pulled a couple of magazines out for their rifles and pistols. He had grabbed some ammo from one of the duffle bags from a team of FIB agents who were guarding the front of the church from the onslaught of Rascalov men.

"We were starting to run dangerously low." Niko took the offered rifle magazine and tossed the second one over to Bernie. "Is Roman unharmed?" He paused in reloading his rifle to watch for Jacob's reaction to the question. He had said that most everyone was at the front and he was partially miffed that Jacob wasn't there protecting him.

"Mostly. We are all a little banged up. Mal is in shock. She hasn't said a word. It's driving Roman mad." Jacob shifted uncomfortably under the dark stare of his friend. He glanced over his shoulder when some debris fell down from one of the piles, causing the other two men to snap to attention and aim their rifles in the direction of the noise.

Niko moved past Jacob slightly to observe the area and make sure no one was trying to jump them, "And Kate?" He didn't look back to Jacob as he trained his eyes on the piles of debris looking for movement. The place was unstable, and things had been shifting and moving around them, but this had seemed intentional and not natural.

"Missing."

Niko lowered his weapon when his hands went limp, "Missing?" He turned slightly around to make sure he heard right, "Missing as in not found yet? Or missing as… in...?" He couldn't finish his sentence or let his mind finish that thought. He had sworn to protect her and keep her safe. He had made promise after promise to her and here he was trying to locate her in a crumbling, burning building, while their enemies sought them out for slaughter. Things were so beyond fucked up for him and he felt his inner rage rattle his soul. He thought he was done with the war life. He thought he was beyond fighting for survival and watching his comrades succumb to their injuries. 'Roman had asked what the wars were like… this is as close as I ever want to get to it ever again…'

"Just not found yet. Calm yourself breda." Jacob lifted his pistol and pointed behind Niko with it, "My men be looking too. Those Rascalov boys are hard to kill. Some kind of better vests and helmets." Several Yardies emerged from behind some of the rubble and nodded before moving off in different directions. "I also got Badman makin' a call. We need help. Major help." He had left his friend and boss with the others and asked him to call in their only favor. Now was as good of a time as any.

"That we do." Florian commented as he shifted on his feet. He was itching to keep moving forward. There were more people out there needing to be delt with and his insides squeezed in anticipation. He had been rewarded with more ammunition and his fingers were twitching to start pulling the trigger again. But Jacob's words had started to punch through the bloodlust and he remembered that Mallorie was pregnant, and not out of danger, she could cause her body more harm if she went into shock or was trying to recover from more serious injuries. He could practically picture her sitting amongst the rubble of the church, silent tears slipping down her cheeks as she clutched her abdomen. He could taste the fear in his mouth, and he quieted his thoughts to focus his attention back to Jacob, "You said Mal is in shock? I should probably go tend to her. It's not good for her condition."

"What condition?" Roman rounded the corner and jumped to the side when all three of them pointed various weapons his direction.

"Roman! You idiot!" Niko shouted at having nearly shot his own cousin for blindly walking around in the most dangerous situation possible, while being unarmed. 'Do you not realize what an easy target you make?!' "What are you doing out here? You should be back where it is safe! With your wife!" He hollered when Roman seemed to completely ignore him.

"Uhh. Well. If she is injured, then shock is not good? She could have a heart attack or brain aneurysm or something. She's also been high strung over planning the wedding." Bernie stumbled over his words slightly before trying to convince Roman that she should just be looked at. He would not give up her secret if she hadn't told Roman herself. He was trying to come up with a plausible reason that would convince Roman that nothing else was wrong per say, just that she needed to be checked out by someone with medical knowledge.

"Good to see you too cousin! So glad to see you aren't killed or dead. Glad to know the entire mafia that hates YOU showed up to MY wedding and tried to kill MY wife, our friends, and blew up this damn church!" Roman sarcastically yelled out and threw his hands up in the air, immediately wincing as his shoulder throbbed painfully. He had managed to keep his wife from getting struck by the falling debris from the ceiling as they ran toward the opposite wall from the explosion, but he had been struck several times on his back and shoulders by flying stones and random pieces of concrete.

"And you don't have a million loan sharks out to collect from you?" Niko snapped back to his cousin. "How many times have I had to bail your ass out of trouble?!"

"I was managing that just fine till you showed up and started killing everyone in sight!" Roman marched up to get in his cousin's face. His emotions had been running high since he had pulled his wife out of the church. She had kept repeating over and over how this couldn't be happening. She was shaking like a leaf, grabbing at her stomach, and bleeding from an injury on her thigh. She had not once looked to him or acknowledged that they had just survived an explosion after getting married. And when he did manage to get her to focus, she had asked where Niko and Kate were.

His blood had boiled over and he tried to march back into the burning building to find his friends. Jacob had stopped him and offered to go instead with some of his men. He had relented but only for a moment before his wife kept asking about Niko and Kate. That had been the final straw and he took off in search for his family and friends, anger and rage burning in his stomach. He was tired of having to constantly avoid being killed and he would make sure this would be the final time someone came for him and his wife.

"Oh! So I should have just let Vlad keep using Mal?" Niko was beyond furious now. While he normally let Roman's comments slide, this time he was done with it all. Could he not see what all he had done to protect him? Everything he did was to keep Roman from being killed by various mobs, gangs, and mafias. And once he had him back in one piece the idiot went and started gambling again and finding trouble at every turn. Was it too much to ask of him to just stop looking for danger?

"Fuck you! This is your fault entirely!" Roman shouted in his cousin's face, fisting his hands into the slightly bloody and dirty dress shirt on Niko.

"Roman!" Bernie yelled aghast at the accusation.

"No he's right. This is my fault. My fight. My problem to deal with." He narrowed his eyes and shoved his cousin off and moved past him harshly. He was feeling so many different things at once- he was happy to see his cousin unharmed for the most part, glad to know that his cousin-in-law was alive, mad at Roman's level of stupidity, angry at not having found Kate yet, and fighting off a deep seated rage over the entire Rascalov family and their constant attempts on everyone's lives. He was so consumed in his thoughts that he missed the approaching men.

Bernie took off after Niko trying to pull him back into cover and force the two to see reason and settle whatever differences they had. He had no idea the level of animosity that was just below the surface and he wanted to correct it. He was just in reach of Niko when he saw the armed men rapidly approaching them. He didn't think, only reacted.

He cupped Niko's upper arm and pushed with all his strength to get him out of the line of fire, partially throwing him off balance and behind a large piece of stone masonry. The first bullet slammed into his chest and took the air from his lungs. The second and third tore through his arm. He felt a few more impacts to his chest before he couldn't distinguish what was taking place. He blinked and the next thing he knew he was on the ground in complete agony. He gasped for air and felt warm liquid fill his lungs, causing him to sputter and gag. He couldn't hear much other than the sounds of bullets striking rock and people shouting. He fought to open his eyes and signal for help. But everything was getting cold and the noise was lessening around him.

"FLORIAN!" Niko recovered from the shove in time to see the barrage of bullets tear into his friend. He knew he had a vest on, but there was so much blood spray. He didn't realize he was screaming in rage till he was standing back in the pathway and firing off at the people who had harmed his friend- draining the magazine quickly. Jacob joined his side to help eliminate the men with him. The whistle of bullets, the crackling of a nearby fire, the moans of the men dying did nothing to satiate the inferno that burned in his chest. He hadn't recognized that his finger was still rigidly attached to the trigger as the rifle persisted to click as the firing mechanism continued to operate without ammunition.

"Oh shit. Shit, shit!" Roman's panicked raised voice broke through to him and he spun on his heel and rushed over to Bernie's side. He didn't even care at how bad his knees hurt when he dropped down on the stone floor next to his fallen comrade, the rifle hanging useless around his body. His hands shook as he tried to figure out where the blood was coming from. Everywhere he looked there was either a bullet hole or mangled bullet stuck to the vest. He sucked in air trying to find some kind of strength to help his friend.

He grabbed Bernie's hand and pulled it up over his chest checking for a pulse, "Come on Florian. Don't you die on me." He cupped the side of his face and lightly tapped at it, "Come on! Wake up!" His mind was frantically trying to prove him wrong. That what he was seeing wasn't happening. That this was one messed up dream and he would wake up in his apartment in Middle Park wrapped around Kate's warm body.

"Bumbaclot!" Jacob moved back toward them and stood watch to make sure no one else would get the drop on them. He had shot a couple of others who had rushed toward them, before moving closer to his friends to stand guard. He glanced down to the man on the ground and had to look away. There was too much blood and it was making him feel uneasy.

Bernie cracked his eyes open and kept trying to breathe through the liquid that kept filling up his lungs. He searched for Niko's face that he figured was close by. He had sworn he had heard his friend calling for him. He tilted his head to the side and spit up what he could to be able to take a deep breath.

"That's it, come on." Niko helped roll him to the side and his hand connected to the open would on his upper side close to his armpit where the vest didn't protect him. It was soaking through his shirt rapidly and he could feel it contract every time Bernie tried to suck in air. 'It must have punctured a lung!'

"Niko, this is it my friend." He coughed and choked briefly before spitting out some more blood.

"No. You aren't allowed to leave." Niko applied as much pressure as he could to the bleeding wound and gripped his hand tightly. He had seen this too many times before and he swore he would never let this happen again. His friends were in a mass grave in a random field in his homeland. Florian had been spared and now he was going to suffer a painful death because of him. It wasn't fair and he felt what sanity he had left start to slip.

"It's okay. It's okay." He was losing the battle to stay awake and he blearily looked toward his comrade's face, "I have stood as shield… and sword." He gasped for air and let his heavy eyelids close. "To the end Niko… to the end."

"Florian? Florian?!" Niko shook him and leaned over his body to press his forehead to Bernie's when he didn't feel a response, "To my dying breath my friend." He closed his eyes and felt his throat tighten with the tumble of his emotions. He had failed. "I am so sorry my friend." The burning in his chest froze over and he felt his eyes start to water. He leaned up from the still body of Bernie's and met Roman's gaze.

"Cousin?" Roman could do no more than whisper and stare in shock at the raw hurt he could see reflected back at him. He had collapsed down on the opposite side of them and listened to the words spoken in a language he was slowly forgetting. He placed his hand on Bernie's shoulder and tried to take comfort in the warm skin he could still feel through the light dress shirt. The vest had several mangled bullets all over the place and he lost count when he tried to take inventory. He looked down as he patted Bernie's shoulder hoping to stir him awake- even if it were to wipe the uncomfortable look away from his cousin's face for a moment longer.

Niko abruptly stood and stalked over to one of the men who was struggling to scoot away from them.

"Why? Why! Tell me WHY!" He yelled to the person as he towered over him. He let the rifle drop to his side and pulled out his pistol. If they wanted to execute his friends and him, then he would return the favor. He kicked the person to their back and knelt down on the chest, forcing his body weight down to make it hard for the person to breathe. "You had best tell me. And it had best be a good answer." He cocked the gun back for effective motivation and pressed the end of the barrel to the person's forehead.

"Your Russian sucks." The man was already bleeding out from the wounds he obtained from Niko's bullets and at this point would rather it all just end then face the slow agonizing death of bleeding out.

"And your aim sucks worse. How many more must I kill for your boss to understand that I have no qualms killing senselessly? Your life means nothing to me, and it means nothing to the hand that pays you. You should have chosen differently. You can pick the game, but you can't change the rules." He lifted off of the person slightly and pulled the trigger. He did not blink as the bullet tore through the person's forehead ending the life before him. He stood up fully and pulled the trigger again. And again. And again. And again.

"Yo, yo, yo… Niko, Niko, Niko!" Little Jacob grabbed ahold of Niko's shoulders and pulled him off the mutilated dead body, "Calm down man, calm down." He tugged on his arms to get him to move further away from the person, "Easy, easy." He forced Niko to turn around to face him. He tried to guide him back toward Roman and Bernie, but Niko was swaying on his feet unsteadily. He nearly fell over when Niko slumped into him and he stilled his legs to keep them both upright.

"Boss?! BOSS!"

They both turned back toward the space the men had occupied and pointed their guns waiting for whoever to round the corner. The steps were hurried, and Niko could make out several different footfalls. 'Great, more idiots come to die…'

"Comish?!" Ron ran through the small space, rifle at the ready, full NOOSE gear on. He had several other people with him- all decked out in LCPD gear.

Ron threw up his fist out to the side to let the men following him not to fire or attack, "Niko?!" He reached up and undid his facemask, looking utterly relieved to see him.

"Ron?" Niko lowered his weapon and reached out to lower Little Jacob's gun as well.

"Francis sent out his distress signal. No one does that unless it's bad. I have a medical unit with me. Where is he?!" Ron moved forward and pulled out a small tablet device, "I've been trying to pinpoint his location but I'm getting some kind of interference." He watched as the tiny blip on his radar showed that he was basically on top of the signal. It would shift one direction then the other ever so slightly, but he could swear he should be laying eyes on his boss right now. He slapped the side of the screen and watched as it only continued to blink at his current position.

"Medical? I need help!" Roman yelled out. He had stayed by Bernie's side when Niko left. He had lifted Bernie up slightly to rest on one of his legs and was clutching his hand for dear life. He could still see a slow heartbeat and was praying to whoever would listen to save his friend. He felt his shoulders slump with the weight of the guilt he now carried. If he had just kept his anger to himself maybe they wouldn't be in this situation.

"Med Team One go!" Ron moved to the side and ushered up a couple of his teammates to assist with the injured man he could see on the floor, "Beta One take point and fan out. Secure this location till we head out." He signaled to the man who watched his six and brushed his hand down his own arm in an assigned signal. One by one armed men filed into the space and set up a perimeter, the medical team started opening duffle bags and went to work on saving Bernie's life.

"What's the status Niko?" He could see something wasn't quite right with the man he had seen a few times over the past couple of days. He looked slightly pale and had a downright murderous glare in his eyes. He figured he would keep him focused and maybe get to figure out where his boss was located.

"I have another injured man back the way we came. He's IAA high ranking." Niko felt numb and locked his knees in place to stay upright. He pointed out to a crevasse in the rubble where Niko and Bernie had come from. If he was going to lose Bernie, at least he would try to get Bernard some help to hopefully save one life today.

"Med Team Two move out. IAA is looking for a missing agent. He was listed as a priority. Take team Charlie with you. Use the north exit for extraction point. Active your beacon too. That way med-evac outside can find you." Another unit branched out and moved off in the direction that Niko had pointed to. Ron pulled on the collar of his vest and readjust the weight that was pulling on his shoulders. "One hell of a day."

"You got that right." Little Jacob leaned into one of the piles of stone and let out a long sigh. He was feeling tired and was wishing for some peace and quiet.

"Have you seen Francis? His distress signal was activated almost twenty minutes ago. The longer it takes us to find him, the worse the odds are of him being alive. They have those in case they are in a life threatening situation. It goes out to all the squadron leaders and our NOOSE office. And in the case of our Deputy Commissioner, the FIB and IAA are notified. Low and behold when my unit and I arrived, FIB and IAA are outside fighting off an entire paramilitary gang." Ron placed his facemask back on and nodded to his second in command to let him know these people were close friends and could be trusted, but he would stick with protocol from here on out.

"We have not found Francis. I am hoping he is with his sister. We were all separated in the explosion." Niko clenched his hands into fists to stop the renewed shaking. His blood was still pumping away in his veins and the darkness he carried was thrashing around inside him wanting back out to finish off the others he could hear clamoring around in the rubble. He had gotten a taste of revenge and he was craving to quench that thirst.

"You mean the rigged gas main? Fucking horrible terrorist attack. The entire street block is basically gone. Every hospital and medical facility are about to be overrun. We called in reinforcements from Bohan, Cerveza Heights, Schottler, and Holland. They should have every available ambulance headed this way. Lots of casualties. We will catch who did this." He paused as he watched his team work on the man who was injured on the ground, "My brother is watching over Packie. He is protected." He lowered his voice to where only Niko would hear him. He wasn't sure what all was known to the rest of his men and officers, but the McReary's weren't exactly on the nice list.

"FRANKIE!"

Niko would recognize her voice anywhere. He turned in every direction trying to discern where it had come from, "KATE?!" He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled out hoping to get a response. She had sounded terrified and in trouble. As the word, or name, clicked in his brain he spun around to face the officer who he was getting accustomed to seeing by Francis' side.

"That sounded like-" Niko started.

"Frankie!" Ron answered and looked down to the tablet again. His mind was running away from him before it dawned on him, "A basement. This church has an entire lower level. They must have fallen through the floor!" Ron tucked the tablet back into a vest pouch and lifted his rifle. "Beta One you have point, escort these folks out of here and be sure that man gets to an ICU asap! Med Team One you will see to his care or so help me you will find yourself on desk duty for life!" He turned to head back out the way he came and jerked his head to the side to signal to Niko, "You coming?!"

Niko didn't answer and decided to charge ahead of Ron. Her scream had seemed distant and it made sense that it could be coming from underground. Roman would be protected with the NOOSE and LCPD team and he tried to quiet the voice that told him he wouldn't be- that the only safe place was at his side. But he would be headed into more trouble locating Kate and he would be torn on who to shield if it came down to it. It was a choice he was not prepared to face any time soon.

Little Jacob followed wordlessly after his friend and nodded to the officer who had come to their rescue. He would follow Niko for the time being knowing that his friend was in a dark place. They had gone on several missions and drug runs together and he could read him easily. He trusted Roman's cousin with his life and would repay the favor today. He had left Badman at the main entrance of the church with the rest of their friends to be protected by their fellow Yardies. It was nice to see that LCPD was on the scene and helping too.

"We saw a rather large hole back this way, might get us access to the lower levels." Ron stopped at an intersection and waited for the other two people to turn and follow his lead. He was more protected than they were, and he was fully loaded on ammo and weapons. He was unsure of the level of skill the two men had that were with him now- but if Francis had trusted them, then he would too. He recognized the Jamaican from known drug runners and gang members list, and he would ignore his police mindset and work with them to find his boss.

"Good. Let's keep going." Niko kept his words clipped and to the point. Maybe if he could just lay eyes on her, he would be able to calm down some. Bernie would be taken care of, Bernard would hopefully be getting the medical attention he needed, and Ron's team would get Roman back out of the church in one piece. He hated having to rely on anyone else, but he would drown out the protest his mind was giving him and learn to trust those around him. Little Jacob had backed him up after only knowing him for little over a month and it had proven to be the closest friendship he had had in years- till he ran back into Florian.

"Here, I'll go first. I have a light." Ron approached the collapsed floor that looked to give the perfect ramp down to the basement levels. He squatted down and turned on his helmet light to see if he could locate the bottom. The makeshift ramp crumbled at the bottom and he could barely see tiled stone that was the basement floor. He figured he'd stick to what he knew and tapped the top of his helmet before getting into position to slide down into the darkness below. He was entering into an unstable section of the church with the risks higher than they had been just going through the debris.

"Right behind you. I'll take second, Jacob take third." Niko may not know the inner workings of the more military police force in this country, but he could take a good guess at what he was trying to say without saying it. He knelt down next to Ron and nodded when he glanced his way. They would work on their silent communication. They had no idea what situation they were entering and the only shared language between them all was English. It was a slight disadvantage, but they would make do.

"Stay silent and follow my direction. Stay close." Ron flipped down his night vision goggles and clicked his light off before slipping down the ramp into the darkness below.

"You trust dem?" Jacob lowered down next to Niko and tried to see where the officer had disappeared to.

"At this point yes. He is Francis' righthand man. And while that isn't saying much, it'll be good enough for me." Niko shifted his legs to be able to slide down easier and roll once he hit the bottom. The less strain he put on his injured legs the better. "Just." He paused and glanced back around the destroyed church, "If this goes to shit, go find Roman and keep him safe."

"What eyes can't see; me heart can't leap at ya know? I got Roman." Jacob patted Niko's shoulder and focused on the bottom of the ramp. Ron flashed his headlight a couple of times to signal it was clear to follow. "Dis Ras better know what and ting."

"I'm sure he's good. Here goes nothing." Niko took a steadying breath and slid down the rough surface toward the darkness below. He felt the floor connect with his feet and immediately rolled to the side to be able to alleviate the impact to his lower half.

Ron caught his shoulders and helped pull him to his feet. A crackling noise followed by a green glow illuminated the space around them, "Here. Use this. It can be easily hid beneath clothes if we need to be shrouded in darkness."

Niko could barely make out the intimidating figure that Ron made in the faint light from the glowstick. He had his face completely covered by the facemask and the large night vision goggles. His rifle was tucked tightly down his front and would be easily snapped to attention at a moment's notice. He grabbed the glowstick and tucked it into his belt, readying his own rifle to be able to follow Ron down the hallway.

A rushing sound, followed by the sound of moving pebbles, greeted them before Jacob tumbled into the space from the ramp. Ron did the same thing for Jacob and hauled him to his feet and cracked another glowstick to life. The group checked their weapons one last time before getting into formation. They would stick close together and take cover when needed. They were going in blind and had no idea what to expect to come across.

"Steady hands, patient fingers." Ron whispered out before heading off down the hall with Niko and Jacob on his six.

Niko squinted in the dark and tried to watch for cross sections of hallways and open doors. Ron was doing a phenomenal job at checking his left then right, letting Niko know to watch the opposite direction as he turned. He assumed that Ron would make a great leader, or perhaps was one at some point in time in a military setting. His combat boots made little to no noise against the stone floor and as he neared a blind spot he would slow and swivel between openings.

As they neared a more open hallway a single gunshot rang out and echoed down the hall. Ron instantly threw his open hand up to force them to stop moving for a moment. The seconds seemed to stretch on for eternity till the louder words bounced off the walls toward them; "On my way"

Niko instantly knew there was someone speaking Russian up ahead. The words were slightly broken in accent, but he blamed the acoustics of the basement for the distortion. "They said they are on their way. We need to move." He whispered the words lowly toward Ron in hopes he would hear him, and his voice wouldn't carry too far.

Ron only nodded before lowering his hand back to his rifle. He let out a slow breath before rounding the corner to where he thought the voice had come from. They moved on quick silent steps toward the light he could see spilling out into the hallway from an open doorway. He lifted his goggles from his face and shifted off the wall the opening was on to be able to rush into the room. He could feel Niko moving close behind him, placing a hand to his right shoulder.

Niko tapped Ron's shoulder twice to let him know he was ready and followed him into the room where the flickering light was filtering out into the hall. Ron went left and he took the right- and that was as far as he was able to look before seeing a body on the floor. His gut clenched tightly seeing Francis on the ground. Blood was pooled under his head, his uniform was slightly shredded over the chest, and he was completely immobile. His vision blurred slightly as yet another person he had somewhat been close to was now possibly dead because of him.

"Boss?!" Ron breathed out after checking the corners for threats or weapons. He rushed to Francis' side and dropped down to start checking for vitals. "Guard the door!" he somewhat shouted as he began to panic. There was so much blood and he could only assume the worse at this point. There was an open wound on the top of his head that appeared to have stopped bleeding as the hair was caked in dried blood. There were a few scrapes on his cheeks and forehead, but nothing that looked pressing. He tapped the side of his bosses face in hopes of getting some kind of response. When none came, he went into survival mode, and started to look for other signs of life. His hands shook as he felt around his neck for a pulse. "What the?"

"What?" Niko joined him on Francis' other side. It felt like losing Bernie all over again and he fought to keep the sickness from taking over. While he hadn't felt any real connection to Kate's brother, having been told to kill her other one by the one in front of him now, he still didn't want him to die. He looked over toward the door to make sure Jacob was standing guard and met his gaze briefly. Jacob was looking over his shoulder to see what the commotion was about for a second before taking up his watch of the hallway. They had silently communicated to one another to watch the other's backs. The 'and no one else will die' wasn't hard to miss in the way Niko looked.

"Someone. Or. Fuck I don't know." He cradled his bosses head and turned it to the side to show Niko where some first aid had been administered. At the base of his neck, close to the collarbone, was an open gunshot wound, but there was a granular substance trying to clot it from bleeding out. "I think someone tried to give him help." He yanked his bag around from his back and started to dig for his small wound care kit. 'If this is what I think it is, he has a small window to get help before it's too late…'

"He looks like he was shot with a shotgun…" Niko glanced down the front of his uniform to the various shredded openings. "Like buckshot or something." He reached out and lightly pressed his hand over his heart to check for bleeding or to feel a heartbeat.

"Should have his vest on. Come on Boss. Show me a sign." Ron was too distracted to pay much attention to Niko or the other man in the room with them. He was trying to clean the neck wound with his limited supplies and hopefully find a pulse. If he could see how bad the damage was to his neck, then he would be able to figure out the next course of action to save his life.

"He does." Niko patted around on his chest looking for other wounds, and to ensure that the vest had held up against the gunshots, before feeling something like paper crinkle beneath his hand.

"I got a pulse!" Ron exclaimed excitedly, "Come on boss! Stay with us just a little bit longer. I'll get you to a hospital in no time!" He tore open a clean wound dressing pad to be placed over the slowly bleeding opening. He went to open the collar more to be able to inspect the injury better when he noticed one of the stars was missing from his collar. "That's. That's not right."

Niko didn't hear him as he pulled open the uniform jacket to see the fast acting wound care packet and a folded piece of paper below it. His eyebrows knitted together as he couldn't figure out why these would be on him. He lifted them up and moved slightly to the side to be able to see them better in the low light of the lamp.

"Niko. His beacon. It's missing." Ron placed the clean pad of the bandage over the wound and pulled the tablet free from his vest. The icon was moving further away from their location and it clicked to him, "He must have put it on Kate…!"

Niko leaned over to see in fact that the blip was moving away from them and he felt a rush of fear. 'If Francis was shot and left here to die, then the people who shot him must have Kate! Hold on Kate, I'm on my way!' He shoved up off the floor and headed toward the door, stuffing the paper items into one of his dress pants pockets. The icon had moved in one direction and he assumed it was down the hall and toward an exit. Jacob followed him out and they both took off down the hall. It wasn't as dark as it had been, and he wondered if it was because there was another door open ahead.

"We gonna get them breda!" Jacob easily matched Niko's pace as they hurried down the hall.

"They won't live much longer." Niko shifted his rifle into a better hold and forced his legs to carry him faster. There was a bright light ahead of them and he could hear some muted voices. It was too difficult to make out words and he strained his ears to be able to pick up on what was being said.

"This is either an ambush or we will be doing the jumpin'. Get ready." Jacob slowed down some once they neared the end of the hall where a flight of stairs ascended to the outer world. Sunlight streamed in through the open doors and they could see the bright blue sky above.

"Right. On my-"

"Cousin! HELP! NIKO!" Roman's voice lifted above all the other voices and noise that was drifting down into the basement.

"Ебать нет (Yebat' net)!" Niko took the steps two at a time and rushed up into the blinding light of midday.

Roman was being dragged across the graveyard that was partially covered in broken off chunks of the church and surrounding buildings. NOOSE agents held on to his arms and were having difficulty containing him as he thrashed around wildly. A fire was raging through the building next door and the heat was intense. The distinct sound of gunfire assaulted his ears, and he couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Sirens wailed over the tops of the buildings and bounced off whatever surface it touched. There was a couple of armored black trucks parked down the slope that had other heavily armed men standing around. A flash of red caught his attention and he saw a person dump Kate off into the back of one of the trucks.

"The fuck are you doing with my cousin and girlfriend?!" The coldness that had kept a firm grip on his heart since watching Bernie get shot, incinerated back into the roaring fury that had held him together all these years. The bitterness that kept forcing him to make poor choices shrank away at the onslaught of anger that turned every other emotion to ash. It was all encompassing and overpowering. There was no more pain to hold him back. There was no more doubt to be had in his ability to save those he loved. There was only the need to get Roman and Kate safe.

"Shoot him!" Someone yelled amongst the chaos.

Niko dove off to the side to take cover behind a large headstone as the bullets rained in his direction. He could see that Jacob had ducked back down into the stairwell to be protected from the barrage of bullets. He would wait for a break in the shooting and start making his way over to where Roman was being dragged off too. He prayed that these people were stupid enough and didn't drive off with Kate while he was under attack.

He couldn't see how many people were around, but he knew he was outnumbered, outgunned, and pinned to his current location. His girlfriend was in the back of a truck within his sight, his cousin was screaming his head off trying to fight off the people on him, and the constant onslaught of bullets was wearing on him. He was trying to formulate a plan of attack, but every time he'd get an idea the opening would pass. There was just too many people attacking at once to safely make it to his cousin or to Kate. 'I could always just go for it and suffer the consequences later…'

A buzzing started in one of his pockets and he tried to ignore the phone as he kept trying to count the beats between gunfire. He would make a break for it and hope nothing too vital was hit by a stray bullet. But the buzzing would just not stop. "What could possibly be important right this second?!" He jerked the cell phone from his pocket and saw a blocked caller ID flash on the screen. Going against his better judgement he answered the call.

"Need a little backup?" The voice sounded like it was coming through a microphone and there was a high pitched humming that was trying to drown out the female voice.

"Who is this?" Niko shifted his hold on his cell phone and rolled over to a new headstone as someone approached. He fired his rifle to kill them and watched as the body crumbled down to the ground unmoving. 'One down. Too many more to go.'

"Look up and guess." The voice crackled over the line and disconnected the call. The sound of helicopter blades whirling greeted his ears and he shielded his eyes as he looked up over the burning ruble of the semi-destroyed church. A black IAA helicopter moved from behind the church and began to hover slightly over his position. He watched as the side hatch slid open rapidly and the large barrel of a gatling gun emerged.

"GUESS WHO'S BACK BITCHES!" Gerry shouted over the noise of the helicopter blades. The hum of the spinning barrel started before Gerry opened fire on the men he saw standing around in the graveyard. He made sweeping motions trying to get the men to let go of Roman and to move away from the trucks. He shifted back to the men approaching Niko's location forcing them to retreat before swinging the gun back around to keep the people from harming Roman.

The opposite side of the chopper opened up and thick black ropes dropped down to the ground. People in full body gear slid down the ropes and moved out of the way for their comrades to descend behind them. They knelt down on the ground and formed a semi-circle, allowing those who just touched the ground a chance to prep their weapons and get situated. The last person hit the ground and pulled on the rope, letting the person know in the chopper to release them. The ropes dropped to the ground with force and caused a small dirt cloud to form. The chopper slowly moved over the graveyard to give Gerry a better angle to kill the enemies and provide cover for the people on the ground.

One of the people, who looked to be slightly shorter and less built, moved over to where Niko was taking cover, carrying what looked to be several vests and guns. They had on a helmet with a blacked out visor, a cloth covering over the mouth and nose, a heavy tactical bulletproof vest that had a lower flap to protect more of the stomach and soft tissue places on the body. The entire outfit was a deep blue, almost black, and covered in extra magazines, grenades, knives, and additional pistols. The unit moved with them and set up behind various tombstones and debris for cover. Jacob used the distraction to run over to where Niko was and ducked down next to his side.

The person knelt down in front of Niko and Little Jacob, "Hey Niko, fancy seeing you here." She lifted the visor and pulled down the face covering, "We should probably stop meeting this way though. At least this time I don't need to confiscate any coke." She let out a halfhearted smile before shoving a bulletproof vest into each of their arms. The gunfire started back up as Gerry had to reload new clips to the gun. Every time the helicopter moved, brass shell casings and broken clips would fall to the ground around them.

"For once I am glad to see you- Michelle." Niko shook his head and flinched downward when a stray bullet embedded into the headstone close to them. Quickly he maneuvered the vest over his chest and did up the straps. He was thankful for the extra protection and helped Jacob adjust the velcro to cover more of his body. He would not let the same injury happen to him that had befallen Bernie.

"It's Karen. Remember?" She smirked having noticed the way they had changed her names around. She removed the strap to a submachine gun from her shoulder and handed it off to Jacob, "This should be more suited for you."

"Much appreciated." He turned to look out around their cover and opened fire on the people who kept trying to contain Roman. He would focus his attention there and give Niko a chance to go for Kate.

"How bad?" She studied the bloodied sleeves that were tied around Niko's legs. She didn't know how extensive his injuries were and knew he would press on even if it was life threatening. She glanced up to him when he didn't immediately answer her.

"I'll be fine." He went to move back toward the fight when she grabbed his forearm, pulling him back down and to her side. She knew what was truly bothering him and she would make sure he didn't kill himself trying to do what was right for once.

"Where is she? Everything is so fucked up right now and I don't have reliable intel." She moved in closer to him to avoid getting struck by a stray bullet. She pulled up her facemask and dropped the visor. She was in the presence of her fellow agents and she wouldn't show too much favoritism and have it be called out later. Silently she redid some of the straps to Niko's vest to make sure it was seated right and would keep him safe. They were facing tougher enemies that were using armor piercing rounds, and she would leave nothing to chance. Satisfied that he would have some form of protection on him she went back to holding on to his forearm, keeping him in place for a moment longer.

"Black armored truck at the bottom of the hill. Roman needs help too." He placed his own hand over her gloved one and gave it a gentle squeeze in thanks. It was nice to know that she was there to help, and she immediately knew the source of the problem. He had always appreciated that about her when they were dating, or not dating in his eyes. She would get to the bottom of the conversation first and keep their talks short and to the point.

"You hear that Gerry? Black armored truck at street level." She spoke into a radio that was strapped to her shoulder.

"Copy that! Watch out fuckers here comes the rain!" Gerry's voice laughed over the radio before the gatling gun sprayed the area close to the trucks, mowing down men as they tried to run for cover.

She moved her other hand to her ear and talked into the earpiece she had on, "All units this is Delta Overlook calling for backup at Suffolk Church Graveyard. High level target is in the back of a black armored truck. Second target is being harassed by imposter NOOSE agents. Repeat, they are not NOOSE. Use the new code words for identification. Still missing is our leader. Be on the lookout. Lethal force is authorized." She removed her hand from the earpiece and tapped on Niko's hand that still rested over hers. "Let's go rescue us a Princess." She lifted her hand and waved two fingers in the direction of the phony NOOSE agents.

"Here that Katie? Gerry's coming for ya!" His voice cackled over the radio and caused Niko to smirk slightly at the crazed tone he used. Karen shook her head and readied her own weapons to follow her unit around the battlefield.

The unit spread out between the headstones and started their forward progress to the fake NOOSE agents that had finally knocked the screaming and kicking Roman unconscious. Niko watched them move in close quarters and never strayed too far from their assigned partner. When one of them would aim and fire one direction, the other would cover their opening and kill anyone who got close to them. Karen released him and moved after the last remaining IAA squadron. The helicopter hovered above and provided the best distraction and cover for them.

"This is our chance breda. Let's finish this." Jacob shouted over the noise from the helicopter. The wind that whipped across the ground made it difficult to see and move, but at the same time it kept others from approaching too close to their location. "You want Roman or Kate? I'll follow your lead!"

"Let's free Roman. You stay with him and I'll go after Kate with Gerry's cover. They won't go anywhere with the chopper in the sky!" He yelled back and rolled his shoulders to try and get loose for the ensuing fight. This would be his last and he would be sure that once this was all done, he would be spending as much time as humanly possible doing nothing.

"Gotcha! Let's go!" Jacob adjusted his glasses and crouched down to start heading off toward Roman.

Niko only nodded once before taking off after Karen and her team. He would kill everyone who had tried to harm Roman, then he would make his way down to the trucks where he could still see the back doors open. Jacob stayed close to his side and moved as he did. They would work together and put a stop to all the madness around them. One way or another he would locate Natalya and put an end to her scheme. She was the mastermind behind all of it and he felt his own readiness to kill her. It would be more rewarding than when he shot Dimitri. It would be more satisfying than letting Darko go. And it would be what calmed his troubled soul.

Jacob grabbed the back of his dress shirt and yanked him back behind cover when someone spotted them. The bullets passed in front of his face and shook him from his thoughts. He twisted to the side and fired toward the person who had almost killed him.

"Watch it now." Jacob shouted as he popped up from behind their cover and took out another couple of people, "We gotta have our minds clear!"

"I know that!" Niko responded as he killed a person who attempted to drag Roman away by the legs.

"Then get your head into it. They keep coming Niko. More a de ras clots." He ducked down as he drained the submachine gun and caught the new magazine that Karen tossed his way. She was just a couple of tombstones ahead of them and was keeping a closer eye on them then her team. "We gwan get sheg up good, star."

"Watch out!" Karen shouted as a rocket flew overhead and slammed into the church blowing off another section. Crumbled stone showered down from the impact zone and forced them to scramble for better cover. She took off as fast as she could on her injured leg and shoved at Niko and Jacob to move in the same direction. They all tumbled down behind a larger broken down crypt.

As the dust settled Niko sat up off the ground and wiped at his face to remove some of the debris to be able to see better. Jacob was next to him trying to clean his glasses and nodded to let him know he was mostly unharmed.

"Karen?" Niko called out when he realized she wasn't directly next to them.

"I'm good. That was way too close." She peeked out from behind some of the fallen stone and waved to them. They were still covered from the bullets that continued to pelt the ground and objects around them. "Gerry see if you can spot the launcher!" She yelled into her radio. Her worst fear was the person would target the chopper and they would lose their only main weapon in the fight.

"Miss Delta Overlook, target acquired. Requesting permission to use the other big gun. Oh pretty please?!" Gerry tried to speak like an agent over the radio and caused her to smile and lightly laugh. She could make out the pilot and copilot laughing madly at his joke in the background. 'At least someone is taking this lightly and enjoying themselves…'

"The one with the heat seeker? Or the one with remote detonation? One of those is beyond my pay grade afraid." She shook her head and watched as Niko and Jacob exchanged looks between themselves not understanding what was going on. She had told him as they boarded the helicopter during the wedding ceremony that they were not to use anything that would blow up something. They were just going to simply be eyes in the sky and not on some kind of joyride.

Of course, everything went to shit as they watched in horror as the entire city block started to explode and crumble in on itself as a raging fire tore its way toward the church. She had called her boss the second the first building exploded and lost connection when the church went up in flames. They had been surveying the damage when they noticed movement in the graveyard. She had taken it upon herself to take charge and sent out orders to fight back. IAA was supposed to not get involved, but damnit! Her boss was down there somewhere, and she was willing to throw her career away if it meant saving him and everyone else in that church.

"This damn one right here." The chopper swung around radically to be forward facing and the distinct sound of their tracking system beeped as it rapidly locked into the target.

"Oh fuck. EVERYONE DOWN!" Karen screamed as loud as she could into the earpiece as Gerry activated the flares and homing missiles. Every agent in the battlefield dropped to the ground immediately and took cover as the hiss of the first missile launched free from the tube attached to the bottom of the helicopter. The wind whistled as it blasted off toward the building that the person had fired the rocket launcher from.

The flares erupted from the sides of the helicopter as another rocket charged toward it. The pilot easily moved the bird around to dodge it and let the flares do their job. Another missile hissed as it powered on and got its coordinates for its trajectory. They had no clue who they were messing with. This was an advanced piece of machinery and was only used in warzones and military missions. Karen had called in every last favor she had in order to acquire the bird. And now she was watching it in its full glory as it fought off measly rockets from the ground and buildings.

Niko crawled over to her position and leaned over to her ear so he wouldn't need to shout over the utter ridiculousness above them, "Remind me to never let Gerry around explosives again. I knew his family loved them, but damn." He let a genuine smile cross his face as he glanced up to watch in fascination as the pilot skillfully moved it over them and Gerry kept launching his own attack.

"Deal! We can use this to our advantage and try to get to Roman. They should all be scrambling for their own cover." She glanced over Niko to see Jacob crawling over to them, "You need more ammo? I only have so much for that gun. I have back up pistols."

"I could use another. Where was this the whole time?" He shouted pointing up to the helicopter.

"I figured the gatling gun would be good enough. This is better though." She watched as another missile flew off toward the building where she supposed the person was located that kept launching their own rockets at them. The exterior was starting to break away and she could make out a couple of fires forming on lower levels.

"Much." Jacob took the offered magazine and loaded the weapon before checking his own pistol for ammo.

"How do you want to get to Roman. Your team is still working toward him with no luck." Niko pushed up on his knees and hands to observe the scene. Roman was laying on a stone path that led to the trucks. The Russians were all taking cover behind random objects while returning fire to the IAA agents. Roman was too open and it worried him. He couldn't figure out why they hadn't killed him or Kate yet. 'Unless they have something else worse planned.'

"I have an idea. You may not like it, but it's the best I got." Karen peaked up over their cover next to Niko and figured her plan would be the quickest way to get to Roman before going after Kate.

"I'm listening." Niko glanced over to the armored trucks wishing he could see inside of it. They had chucked her roughly into the back of it and he hadn't seen her try to move or escape. 'She is either being held at gunpoint or is unconscious. Otherwise she would be trying to get free right? Just hold on Лепа (Lepa) I'll be there soon…'

"Aviator Two do you copy?" Karen tilted her face toward her shoulder radio and kept her eyes trained on the battlefield.

"Go ahead Delta Overlook. AVA Two copies, awaiting instruction." The copilot answered her. The chopper whined as it was jerked upwards to avoid another rocket.

"It's MISS Delta Overlook. Get it right Jim." Gerry barked over the open communication line. The beeping of the targeting system booted up again as it sought out the heat signature in the building.

"My name's not Jim!"

"BOYS! Pay attention. Gerry go back to killing people." Karen rolled her eyes beneath her blacked out visor. 'Never thought I would have to say that.' The field was mostly empty in the center, aside from the slightly sloped terrain and gravesites, and if she could convince the highly trained pilot to move along with them, it would provide enough cover for them to help get her team into position for extraction of Roman. She tried to envision her plan working before continuing to talk, "AVA Two, AVA One, do you remember that mission in that desert city located in Sandy Shores?"

"This is AVA One and that is a no go." The pilot responded even though he was focused on keeping the bird from being hit. He released more of the flares as another rocket charged at them. The flares caused the rocket to explode above them and they ducked down as the shock wave pushed down on them.

"Okay what about the Paleto Bay mission? That was training and worked out." She ducked back down when someone spotted them and started firing before the machine gun of the chopper went off.

"I-" The pilot jerked the bird around and started to mow down a couple more people with the pilot controlled gun as he had noticed the men were getting more brave in their approach. "That was a training exercise Delta. Not meant for combat."

"I know but I don't see another option." Karen gripped onto Niko's arm as she tried to convince the pilot to do something that had never been approved by any branch of homefield operating agencies.

There was a rather lengthy pause over the radio as the battle kept going on before a heavy sigh echoed over the radio, "You know that is some Merryweather bullshit. And not cleared for civilian territories or on US soil. We will lose our badges for sure. Not to mention- might as well kiss that pension goodbye."

"I don't care. This is too important for the rules." Karen turned to look at Niko who seemed to be getting impatient with the delay in getting to Roman or Kate.

"AVA One copies."

"Follow my lead Niko, Jacob. He is going to give us cover. Don't stray too far out and you won't get killed." Karen turned around and sat down on the ground, checking her own rifle one last time, and reloading it to be at full capacity. "This is going to be the stupidest thing I've ever done." She breathed out before getting ready to head out into the battlefield. She motioned with her hand for Niko and Jacob to get ready and watched as they crouched down next to her and waited for the signal.

"AVA One in position. On your mark." The bird lowered in its position and hovered directly over the trio. The wind was intense and was blowing everything around them further out. The twin machine guns loaded under the cockpit started to move back and forth as the copilot and pilot located their enemies on the battlefield.

"GO!" Karen yelled and sprung up from her hiding spot, immediately targeting a person who was out in the open. Niko jumped up behind her and started shooting the men that continued to approach Roman. Jacob moved up to his side and protected his blindside. The unit of IAA agents started to shift around in their cover to help take some of the heat off the chopper and small group that was making their way toward the unconscious man on the ground.

The terrain was rough and hilly and was causing the team more trouble to move through. Between the wind, stray bullets that would ricochet off the chopper, and the constant barrage of noise from the machine guns overhead, they kept pressing forward. Niko tried to not let his hopes run away from him, but Roman was so close to him. He could see the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed deeply and slowly.

The warning signal whirled to life inside the cockpit, "Incoming. Take cover!"

Niko grabbed Karen's duffle bag and pulled her off to the side, slamming his body into Jacob's, as he forced them to dive behind a large pile of debris. The flares shot out above their heads as multiple rockets charged toward the helicopter. The pilot jerked the bird to the side to avoid getting hit, and to avoid letting the explosions hit his fellow teammates on the ground, and had to over correct as the blades started to strike the tops of some of the larger monolithic tombstones.

Niko grabbed hold of his friends and encouraged them to keep running for better cover. The Russian's had gotten smart and were shooting everything they had at the helicopter. It would only be a matter of time before the chopper needed to evacuate the area or be destroyed. He watched as he was forced to put more space between himself and Roman. He shoved Karen ahead of them in hopes she would dive behind the large stone structure that sat directly in the middle of the graveyard.

"Grenade!" Karen shouted out as the metal sphere dropped down between her and where Niko and Jacob were running. She turned and rushed toward it, kicking it off to the side before it exploded. The concussion blast knocked her, Niko, and Jacob back down to the ground in different directions.

The high pitch ringing pierced through Niko's brain and caused a new wave of nausea to wash over him. His body felt like it was made of lead and was difficult to move. There was a warmth that was rapidly spreading across the back of his head and he struggled to determine what it was. He willed his arm to move and brushed his hand across the back of his head. Warm, thick, liquid greeted his fingertips. He forced his hand back into his line of sight and saw blood smeared over it. 'Fuck.'

His vision was tunneling rapidly, and he struggled to stay conscious. He needed to keep going- his mission wasn't over yet. He needed to rescue Roman and Kate. He needed to start a new life, wanted to start a new life with Kate, and watch Roman's child grow up. Things he never dreamed possible were just at the tips of his fingers, and he was trying to claw his way toward those goals. The universe was mocking him in his moment, and he cursed it in every language he knew. The color was fading from the sky and the level of noise was diminishing. 'Is this how it ends?' was the last thought to cross his mind before the darkness dragged him under.

"So tired of this crap!" Karen huffed out before rolling over to her stomach and scrambling back behind some large chunks of stone to keep from being shot at. "Niko? Jacob?" She looked around worriedly when she didn't seem them immediately.

"Over here!" Jacob called as he pulled himself upright behind the massive mausoleum that graced the center of the graveyard. He rested against the faded marble and tried to steady his breathing. He patted over his chest and legs checking for injuries and gave a thumbs up in Karen's direction when he knew he was good.

"Niko?" Karen glanced around the battlefield and noticed a dress shoe that was sticking out from behind a smaller tombstone. He was laying out in the open and too exposed for her liking. She looked back toward her unit and saw they were fully engaged into a gunfight with the false NOOSE agents. Roman was being dragged down the hill toward the armored trucks and she winced at how they handled his body. She realized she was on her own and would need to act quickly.

The helicopter made a whining noise and jerked to the side erratically. A loud boom reverberated across the graveyard and she glanced up panicked to the chopper. Black smoke started to billow out from the rotating mechanism that kept the blades moving. She couldn't make out the words that were being screamed on her radio over the distress signal that was blaring loudly in the cockpit. The helicopter dropped a few feet before the pilot tried to force it back up over the church.

Another large thunderous clap echoed around them and in an instant, she knew what was going on, "SNIPER!" She screamed it into the earpiece and the radio hoping to give some kind of warning to everyone to take better cover and to check the surrounding buildings. The warning signal for impact squealed overhead as the chopper lost control and started to slowly spin away from the graveyard. She watched in horror as the blades slowed their rotation and the buzz of the engine powering down rang out.

"Gerry! Get out of there! Gerry!" She yelled it over and over in the radio as the helicopter moved further out of her sights. She scrambled from her cover to be able to see where it was going. Static and screaming was the only response she received as it disappeared beyond the partially standing church. The screech of metal striking stone followed by a loud crash drowned out all the other noise in the area. A large fireball erupted above them, and mushroom clouded up toward the brilliantly blue sky. "GERRY!"

The whistling buzz zipped past her head and she dropped down to the ground before the answering bang reached her ears. "Fuck, fuck, Fuck!" She clamored over several large pieces of stone and concrete, ignoring the bite that attacked her legs as her uniform offered no protection from sharp objects. Her leg injury would likely either reopen or new ones would form around it, but she ignored every single stab of pain that ignited over her body- She needed to complete her mission, the only thing left to give in her life. She moved as quickly as she could toward Niko and paused behind a large marble angel statue.

The bullet tore through one on the wings and it dropped down next to her in a crumbling heap. She pulled herself in tightly and tapped on the earpiece to get someone on the line, "Mayday. Sniper is targeting my location. Need help!" No one answered her and she swallowed thickly. She was on her own and she needed to get Niko to cover before the sniper realized who it was laying out in the open.

"Jacob! Can you reach Niko?" She screamed out over the ensuing gunfire between her unit and the other enemies in the area.

"No! I'm pinned down by des damn ras clots!" He shouted back to her as he attempted to take out the people who were moving in his direction.

"What?!" She peaked around the statue briefly before tucking back behind it. The ground near her left foot somewhat exploded as a bullet struck it. Dirt and grass flying in different directions. 'High caliber. Will definitely rip through the vest. Fuck!'

"Change of plans Jacob!" She shouted over to him and waited a second to be sure he was listening between his firing of the submachine gun.

"Iyah listenin'!"

"I have a letter under my vest. Make sure it gets where it needs to go." She forced her fear down as far as it would go and took in several deep breaths. She took off the duffle bag that was attached to her back and brought it around front. She had a plan, and it could be the very last thing she ever did. The sniper was skilled and was mocking her the longer she stayed put. She stood on shaky legs making sure every part of her was behind the statue. 'Boss. I'm sorry. I did the best I could. Wherever you are I hope you know that I gave it my all. Honor my star on the wall.'

Her nerves settled and she took one last fortifying breath. She tossed the large bag to her left and took off in a dead run to where Niko was laying on the ground a split second later. She heard the thunder from the sniper and knew they had taken her bait. She slid into Niko's side and grabbed his vest to haul him up and over her as she rolled them toward the next large piece of cover. He was deadweight and it was more difficult to move him than she was anticipating.

Pain exploded across her back and she cried out before her air ran out. She dug deep to keep moving them and pulled on his body to drag him into cover. Adrenalin coursed through her veins as she realized that safety was in reach. She pulled as hard as she could on the shoulder straps of his vest as she dragged him toward the mausoleum Jacob was using for cover.

"Hurry!" Jacob yelled out to her, waving wildly trying to encourage her on.

The clinking of bullet casings chimed out as they hit the floor of the abandoned warehouse. Smoke wafted around the space from the fires that were burning on the floors below. Several empty Soviet rocket launchers were discarded around the platform that provided the best vantage point. Delicately manicured fingers reached out and grabbed another fifty caliber round from the box to load into the empty chamber. The movement was natural as they loaded the next bullet in the chamber and slid the bolt handle into the firing position. Deep slow breaths echoed softly in the open space as they moved the scope around looking for the moving target.

They lined up the next shot, adjusted the scope, and fired. The kick back from the rifle caused them to lose the target briefly before she landed the scope back on the struggling target. Cold blue eyes watched as the person desperately tried to drag an unmoving body to cover. Recognition hit and they stood up rapidly from their perch, moving to the large open industrial window. Using the concrete frame, they adjusted the dial on the scope, before lifting it back up to take out their next target.

Niko opened his eyes as his internal warning system told him he was being moved aggressively. His vison was extremely blurry, and he blinked rapidly to try and get some clarity. His whole body was aching and burning, and every time he was jerked around something new would start hurting. The person must have noticed him waking as their head in the helmet snapped down to look at him.

The crosshairs lined up where they wanted them to go, and they sucked in a long breath, holding it in to keep from creating any sway. The finger slid into the trigger guard and rested over the polished metal of the trigger. They watched as the person looked down abruptly and found the opening they needed.

"Для тебя двоюродный брат (Dlya tebya dvoyurodnyy brat)"

The bullet charged from the barrel toward her target.

Niko tried to form the strength to help them move him behind cover. He was starting to realize just how out in the open they were and put what little energy he had into shoving his feet out to help scoot backward. He could hear Jacob yelling at someone to hurry up over the sounds of guns firing. His strength was leaving him faster than he was able to channel it and he could feel his legs giving out on him. His world was starting to fade again. He felt Jacob grab hold of the vest he had on and he looked back up to the person who was shielding him from the others who were shooting in their direction.

He watched as the helmet snapped to the side violently before the body went with it. The echo of the sniper felt louder than it should have been. And he could do nothing but watch as the body dropped off to his side before everything just faded into darkness.

aaaaa

(A/N): So I've decided to split this chapter here. If I had left it whole, this thing would be like 45k-55k words and would've taken me the entire month to review and edit.

Figured y'all would want something before Christmas! Don't worry! My goal is to get the second part out in all it's glory before Christmas.

My present to everyone! Don't kill me! One Love.