AN: Hello there. Sorry for the wait time as I was on holiday, but I still had to study for school. I finally got to publish this chapter, but this is only the first part as I do not want to keep everyone waiting. The next Chapter will probably come out next month. Thank you all for reading. Progress will be slowed as I am working on another story I could not help writing. Thank you all for your understanding.

The operators selected for this mission exited the planning room with files in their hands. The file contained information about the freighter and the suspected number of White Mask terrorists on board. Rama approached the armoury as he had not passed the test to become a fully-fledged operator. He wore his classic pitch-black battle dress; a button-down shirt with battle pants. He tucked his shirt in and had a tactical belt. He then grabbed a Kevlar vest, knee and elbow pads, along with a SWAT helmet and lastly, he wore black combat boots. For his weapon of choice, he grabbed the trusty M4A1 SOPMOD (red dot sight, laser sight, suppressor and M203) and a suppressed P226. He attached the garrote wire, a baton, his combat knife and P226 to his belt. He also brought his karambit knife, just in case and a bundle of grenades. He left the armory and saw the other operators waiting for him. Ash, IQ, Blitz, Sledge, Thermite, Dokkaebi, Thatcher, Jackal and Zofia.

"Let's see what you got recruit,"

The helicopter blades spun, slicing the air and creating the distinct 'chop' noise. Rama looked down at the channel, looking at the complexion of the waves and how the setting sun's rays reflected off of the water.

"Rama," a voice said over the intercoms, shaking him back to attention. He looked forward and saw Ash. "ETA in 1 minute!" Rama glanced around and saw the other operators on this helicopter preparing their weapons. Rama double-checked his M4A1 and his P226. Everything was in order. The plan was to insert at top of the bridge. The team will clear the bridge and then, descend into the ship's cargo hold, securing the package.

"Why aren't we attacking at night?" a pissed off Thatcher said.

"Maybe Six got sick off us and sent us on a suicide mission," Blitz joked.

"This is fucking outrageous!" Thatcher responded.

"ETA in thirty seconds!" Ash announced. As Ash prepared the fast rope, the two Blackhawks came under small-arms fire from the deck of the ship. "Contact!" Ash called out. Rama took aim and returned fire. The incoming fire was characterized by inaccuracy as the bullets merely impacted and or ricochet against the Blackhawks. Ash then pushed the fast rope down.

Rama took the initiative and rappelled down the rope, landing on the hard steel roof. He crouched and provided cover fire for the operators from the helicopter that rappelled down. The operators in the second helicopter would clear the deck from above. Luckily, the freighter wasn't carrying that many containers. After Thermite dropped down, he placed an exothermic charge on the ceiling of the bridge.

"Fire in the hole!" Thermite announced. He then clicked the detonator and the explosive charge activated, sizzling and sending sparks away. Rama covered his eyes and seconds later, a massive explosion erupted, followed by a loud thud. Rama slung his weapon across his back and jumped down. He landed on his feet, but several terrorists swarmed and tackled him to the ground.

"Rama!" An operator shouted. Ash was the second one to drop down into the bridge. She saw three terrorists on top of Rama, and she grabbed one of the terrorists and pulled him away. Ash then pushed the terrorist on the floor and shot him twice. Ash then killed the other terrorists standing in the bridge room. Blitz then dropped down and pulled another terrorist away from Rama and smacked him in the face with his shield. The remaining operators followed suit. The remaining terrorist on him tried to strike Rama in the head but he kept getting blocked. Rama seeing his chance, quickly lunged at his chin and smashed the terrorist's head to the floor. Quickly taking out his pistol, he killed the terrorist with multiple shots to the head. Rama then pushed the body away and stood up. Holstering the pistol and equipping his rifle, Rama walked towards the other operators, huddling up by the door.

"You ok Rama?" Thermite asked. Rama simply nodded. Blitz took point and exited the bridge, steadily walking down the stairs with the other four operators behind him.

The team descended the stairs and arrived at the accommodation section of the ship. This section of the ship was divided into hallways with multiple cubic rooms per hallway. There were four hallways, and each hallway was flanked by rooms on both sides. These rooms were wooden and provided the perfect place for an ambush. 'Each of these rooms must be cleared out,' Rama thought. Blitz then moved towards the steep steel stairs, descending to another living quarters. The other operators then deployed drones to scout the rooms instead of on clearing them in person.

"Bravo team, deploying on the deck," Zofia radioed.

"Copy," Ash replied. "Rendezvous at the cargo hold. Over and out,"

Ash looked at the stairs and saw Blitz and Rama, ready to advance. "Understood, over and out." She spoke. A few minutes passed and the operators collected their drones and gave the "all clear" sign before stacking by the stairs.

"Ok, let's go," Blitz said. The five operators then descended down the stairs and were met with more rooms. Blitz then quickly moved to the other side of the room where the stairs were, which led to the first floor. Meanwhile, the rest would deploy their drones again.

"Something is jamming my drone," Thermite whispered. "I can't get a good look through my phone!" Thermite then placed his phone back into his pocket and readied his gun. Everyone stood in place, not making a single sound, as if was time stopped and everyone was frozen. The atmosphere was suspiciously quiet. Rama's heart rate quickened, and more adrenaline was pumped through his body. His brain kept feeding him the flashbacks of The Raid as the situation was eerily similar. Uneasy period of silence, then, all hell breaks loose. Rama closed his eyes and reopened them. What went from a tense standoff snowballed into a nightmare. Gunfire suddenly erupted from the walls as the terrorists opened fire. Chunks of wood flew everywhere as the bullets ripped through it. Rama quickly jumped away but as he turned his head to see the other operators, a bullet tore through Ash, penetrating her Kevlar armour. She screamed in pain before dropping to the floor.

"ASH IS HIT!" Thermite shouted out. Everyone started opening fire in this hail of gunfire. Ash crawled to Rama and he quickly dragged behind Blitz's shield. Rama aimed his M203 grenade launcher and fired at the source of the gunfire. He pressed the trigger and the explosion followed, silencing the room. A brief moment of pause occurred as the operators cleared their heads. The M203 blew a hole in the wall between the two rooms, killing the group of terrorists held out there. The doors leading to the other rooms were opened and more terrorists emerged. Rama immediately returned fire, burning through another magazine. Rama gritted his teeth as he reloaded another clip and opened fire again at a wooden door where a terrorist was hiding. The bullets tore through the door and they impacted throughout the terrorist's chest. The force from the bullets caused him to stumble back and eventually collapse. The gunfire subsided and Rama stood up from a prone position. He looked around and saw the number of shell casings on the floor, along with the strong smell of gunpowder. The other operators quickly shifted from one side to the other, taking cover by Blitz and protecting Ash. Blitz gave Thatcher his First Aid Kit, and he began to perform buddy aid on Ash. The bullet entered Ash's abdomen and was lodged somewhere in her body. Thatcher concluded this because there wasn't an exit wound. He then injected her with morphine and wrapped medical bandages around the wound. Rama took zero chances and began to manually clear out the living quarters. He first approached the hallway, closest to him and he started by kicking down each door. A concealed terrorist hid in a room and he clenched a knife in his hand. He peeked through a small viewing port on the window. The terrorist also placed another hand on his mouth to keep quiet. His hands were steady. Rama moved on to the last hallway, located on the right side, next to the stairs that led towards the upper quarters. The first two doors were clear but as Rama approached the end, he sensed something was wrong. He walked past two more rooms but suddenly, the door opened, and a terrorist lunged with a knife at Rama. Rama parried the knife attack with his rifle, and he launched a lightning-fast strike at his throat. The terrorist choked and Rama pushed him back into the room.

The terrorist quickly raised his hands up and tried to surrender. "Hear me out!" The terrorist said. The moral dilemma, kill the terrorist or interrogate him?

Rama lowered his weapon. "Ok, let's talk."

Bravo team fared better as they cleared out most of the terrorists on the deck from the helicopter and Alpha consumed most of the terrorist reinforcements. When they landed on the deck, it was virtually clear, and they simply waltzed into the cabin. They rendezvoused with Alpha team on the ground floor. Ash was faring better now as the morphine kicked in and Thatcher placed her on the floor. Alpha team were running wasted a third of their ammunition on that one engagement.

"Where is Rama?" Zofia asked.

"Interrogating someone," Blitz responded.

"Do we continue with the mission?" Thermite asked.

"Do we have a choice?" Zofia responded.

"What are we going to do about Ash? She is in no shape to continue the mission. We have to medivac her out of here now before it's too late," Thatcher said. The air thickened as teammates began to argue. Everyone knew they had to complete the mission but what about Ash? She can't stay there and suffer. Ash was propped up against a wall, with one of her hands pressing against the wound. Her clothes, bandages and hands were now stained in blood. "This is Rainbow Operative Thatcher, calling for Rainbow, over" he radioed.

"Copy Thatcher, this is Harry,"

"We need a medivac for a casualty. GSW to the abdomen. Ash is no longer able to stand up, let alone fight. Over,"

"Sorry Thatcher but we are unauthorized to send a medivac to your location. Once you secure the package, we will exfil you. Over and out."

"Bloody useless wanker!"

Rama slung his weapon over his shoulder and leaned against the wall. The terrorist sat down on the bed. The uneasiness grew as Rama did not trust the terrorist. Rama slung his M4A1 over his shoulder to build trust with this potential ally. The terrorist removed his hood and placed the infamous white mask on the bed, revealing his face. An Asian man. Probably in his late twenties or early thirties. His face was manufactured with a steadfast, serious tone. It seemed like he had never experienced an emotion. He reeked of discipline.

"Who are you?" Rama questioned. "I know you are not a real terrorist because you wouldn't surrender,"

"You got me," the man joked back, breaking his character and forming a small smile. "I don't want to talk here, you can't be sure who is next to us," the man said, transforming back into the steadfast man. "I think still deserve to know something." The man then handed over a file to Rama. Rama uneasily, grabs the file and opens it to read it however, it's not in English nor in Indonesian, but rather, in Chinese.

"Chinese spy?" Rama asked.

The man ignored Rama's question and then said: "I've been tracking that package for months now," he paused. "Well, it's safe in Rainbow's hands," he finished. The man then stood up and gathered a secret suitcase, hidden underneath the bed. He grabbed it and tried to exit the room, but Rama stopped him.

"I need to know more information,"

"Ok, meet me here. sharp," the man replied, giving a business card to Rama. "One word of warning, Mr. Rama. Do not trust anyone," the man said. Rama glanced down at the business card and when he looked back up, the man was gone.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Lin Biao." Rama remarked before he placed the file into a pocket and rushed downstairs.

Finishing that strange encounter, Rama headed downstairs. Ash was slowly bleeding out on the floor while the others waited for the small detachment sent forward to report back. Rama checked his ammo and saw he had five magazines, still a lot as he took eight in total. However, he could not speak for the others. Morale was low but he knew they would not surrender. Everyone swore an oath, and no one was going to break it.

"Rama, you're back," Thatcher coldly stated.

"How was that interrogation?" Blitzed curiously asked.

"He surrendered but then managed to knock me out. When I woke back up, I saw that he escaped through a window, jumping into the sea," Rama lied. He had to protect this spy.

"That's bullshit, you won in a Two v One against Ela and Zofia," Ash muttered. She hadn't the strength to speak up and thus, no one heard her. The cloth she produced to maintain pressure on the bullet wound was now fully stained with her blood. More and more sweat dripped down her pale forehead as her body was pumped full of adrenaline. Rama could not wait any more, he asked himself 'was everyone going to sit on their asses?' He walked to the stairs that descended into the cargo hold.

"Where's Rama going?"

"Finishing the mission."