Alex was trudging through the jungle in South Africa flanked by Shale and Marcus and trailed by Sagitta, all wielding machetes and cutting their way through the foliage.
"This wasn't how I envisioned enjoying today's stroll," Marcus grumbled.
"Only 2.5 kilometers left," Ryan announced.
In an effort to spread the wealth, Alex delegated the map reading to Ryan and regretted it immensely. Ryan's skill interpreting the poorly constructed map was unparalleled, but being reminded every kilometer how much longer they had was grating on Marcus's nerves.
Even Alex's endurance was dwindling. He took a swig of his canteen and turned to ask a question when his foot slipped sharply downward. Hands latched onto his arm and shirt collar roughly keeping him from falling down the slope.
"Woah!" Marcus exclaimed as he pulled Alex back up. "Hey, you sure you're reading that map right?" he barked at Ryan.
"Yes, I think there's a natural land bridge a little further down." Though his expression as he reviewed the map didn't inspire confidence.
They were tasked with infiltrating a safe house buried deeply in the jungle that housed their target; this trip was simply a recon trek.
A meeting was taking place in a little over 24 hours to decide the fate of Radiance, an up and coming intelligence organization set to rival Scorpia and they needed their target eliminated before then. Their target was like to lead the group following the meeting's elections.
They needed to dismantle its leadership in advance of the meeting since getting to the meeting would be near impossible. It's location privy to only the few involved and requiring a map that they wouldn't likely be able to obtain in time.
With the target's residence loosely noted on the locals' map, they figured it would offer a better chance; they just needed to get a more precise location figured out. Hence, this excursion.
"The house might actually be down below. It's hard to tell," Ryan speculated.
Alex took charge now. "Okay, it takes about three and a half hours to get here. I'll take a small team and repel down.
Shale, Ryan, Jen, you're with me. Marcus, scout out up top with the rest and if we're not back in two hours...eh, send in rescue." He said the last part more as a joke but Marcus gave him a stern look and remarked in the affirmative.
Planting a spike and testing its weight, Shale scaled down the cliff side first, followed by Ryan, Jen, then Alex.
Alex hoped they'd at least be able to spot the house as the repelled down but no such luck. The trees supplied ample coverage, making the bottom of the valley look almost harmless.
Though, as Alex neared the bottom, a hand latched over his mouth and he was torn roughly off the rope, pulled off into the bushes.
Alex struggled but was held firmly and quickly spotted Jen behind a nearby tree with a finger up to her mouth. Something was wrong.
Ryan behind a tree further down so using process of elimination, Shale was likely at his back.
A guard turned the corner packing an assault rifle and full body armor.
At least they were in the right place, Alex thought grimly.
Switching to comms, Jen scouted up ahead flanked by Ryan as Shale and Alex trailed behind the guard.
"Security gets tighter as you progress inward," he heard Jenn whisper.
"Record as much detail as you can and get out," Alex ordered.
"Affirmative."
With little warning and a slight rustling heard behind him, another guard traversed through the brush, spotted them, and grabbed Alex's arm roughly. The guard had reached for his gun but Shale's reflexes were faster.
A hunting knife was thrust into the man's throat and Shale tore Alex from his grasp.
Alex's brain was slowly processing what had happened while facing the sudden whiplash, but Shale deftly called for the abort. Sprinting back to the drop point together, Alex fired point-blank at two more guards they passed but even with the silencer, their confrontation with the guard had likely been heard with the lack of wildlife.
Guards swarmed and blocked them from their extraction point, leaving few options. While their other two members were compromised, they stated to the shadows and underbrush.
"We need higher ground," Shale whispered in his ear.
Alex nodded in agreement and soon was hoisted into one of the larger trees by Shale before the sound of men stomping over the terrain could be heard approaching.
They were approaching far faster than it would allow for Shale to join him in the tree.
"We're out of time," Alex said and tried to climb down. After all, two were better than one in a fire fight, but Shale vehemently refused shaking his head.
"Stay hidden. Extraction will come. They know you are here," he asserted. While Alex was in charge of them, they were in charge of his safety as dictated by Yassen. In this moment, Shale's order trounced any of his.
Before Alex could say anything further on the matter, Shale disappeared and soon, the sounds of the guards' movements moved away from his location as well.
Left to his own thoughts, he mentally berated himself for how bad this reconnaissance mission had gone. Yassen had been giving him more and more responsibility so he could prove himself worthy of leadership.
Nice leadership skills, his mind taunted him.
He had little doubt that Ryan and Jen were killed and Shale had left, serving as a diversion. Their target had certainly been evacuated from the area and likely wouldn't return again. They missed their one shot.
Alex curled up in the tree and waited, reserving body heat as the air cooled.
His brain replayed the day's events again and again until finally he checked his watch. Six hours had passed and he had yet to notice any trace of his extraction team.
What had happened? He prayed he didn't lose any more people today. The current body count gutted him.
Finally, Alex had enough hiding in trees and climbed down, navigating the brush with practiced ease as he reached the point where they had repelled down.
The rope was still there. It was so easy, enticing even. No further loss of life needed to be risked in his behalf if he could climb out of this hellhole himself. They could then reconvene and rescue Shale if he hadn't made it back himself either.
Crawling on his stomach he knew climbing that distance would put him at tremendous risk. Nothing would impede a person standing on the ground with a gun from shooting him.
He'd only have one chance. No guards could be heard nearby and Alex could his chance.
He scrambled to his feet but instead of moving to the rope, his foot was captured in a trap and he was pulled off his feet and into the air, dangling upside down.
Shit shit shit, his internal mantra echoed.
He was able to grab a knife from his belt and cut himself loose but all this took time he didn't have.
Already he could hear the thundering of boots closing in on him through the trees, but he had no intention of being easy prey and he would certainly give them hell for what they did to his unit.
The first guard that broke through the trees was greeted by a throwing knife into his clavicle. The second got considerably closer before Alex kicked him in the groin and knocked him unconscious.
He deftly incapacitated three more guards, killing one, before two dozen more had ambushed him. While he likely damaged a considerable number of them, he became overwhelmed and finally was bound and carried away.
Sometime later, he found himself bound, gagged, blindfolded and seated in a chair. Considering his day already proved to have the makings of then olden days when he worked for MI6, he could help but anticipate what would surely be another modern-day equivalent of a villain's monologue.
The blindfold was ripped off his head shortly after regaining consciousness and it took a few moments being blinded by the light before his eyes adjusted.
While not his target, the man standing in front of him had tanned skin, unnaturally white teeth and looked far too similar to Ken Blankenship from MXC that Alex's brain was quick to assign the likeness. Perhaps it was exhaustion but Alex couldn't help but laugh at recalling the flamboyant host when regarding the man in front of him.
"Welcome to hell, you brat," Ken said with a cruel smile.
His response was garbled by the gag and Ken quirked an eyebrow in a comically curious expression. "Let's hear what the little boy has to say for himself," he said with another chuckle.
Soon, he felt the fabric tensely restricting his jaw fall from his mouth.
"What? You can't handle this 'little boy' yourself so you take shots at my ego. I'm wounded, really," he retorted with his trademark bravado.
The man quieted down and leered at him. "When I heard all the trouble we were having capturing one agent, I'd envisioned someone who at least hit puberty. You seem like hardly the trouble. How sad that your unit left you behind."
His comment spurred on chuckles from crowd behind him.
Ignoring the last comment, Alex instead did in his best Vic Romano-impression voice. "Right you are, Ken!" Considering he was met was varying degrees of confusion or apprehension, he didn't dwindle on the joke.
"If I'm 'hardly the trouble', feel free to let me go on my merry way."
Ken Blankenship seemed to go from confusion to understanding to realization.
"You'll be sent on your merry way shortly. I hope you have a nice swim. Something to take with you before you leave...a souvenir."
Alex was mildly creeped out by Ken's disgustingly chipper tone. Sure enough, even a shallow stroke of a blade spanned Alex's forearm and a longer, deeper cut was sliced through his upper thigh.
Alex pulled against the restraints fruitlessly but by the final stroke, he grunted at the sudden cruelty.
"What the hell?!"
The chair he had been tied to was yanked backward, dragged along by its back two legs, and pulled through a side door held open by a pair of Ken's men.
Ken casually strolled along behind, remaining in Alex's view.
Outside, the winds whipped around them—they were clearly at some significant altitude.
"I don't generally kill children but as you are particularly troublesome, you get to choose: sink or swim."
Alex was unlatched to the chair and pulled to his feet. The remaining bindings on his wrists and ankles plus the added 'souvenir' dripping down his arms and leg ached but he wasn't left standing for long.
Shoved backwards, he flailed as he fell, and—sooner than anticipated—his back slammed into the surface of the water, and his final thoughts flashed to his thinking of Yassen and his team.
The shock of the water and impact muddled his mind and paralyzed his muscles before his vision blurred.
With his back now settling at the rocky bottom of the lake, his mind must've started hallucinating: Shake appeared in his vision.
The cuts gushed freely into the water forming little clouds of blood. With the cuts bleeding out and the impact of the surface, he remained paralyzed and did nothing as water lapped over him. There was no sound, no pain, no feeling; so peaceful. Closing his eyes, he drifted off to sleep.
Marcus was relaying with Shale's base team scaling the cliffs, when he heard chatter and turned just in time to see Alex—bound and bleeding—tossed carelessly off the cliff.
"Shit. Shale, change of plans," he called into comms. "Get Orion out of here. Team Charlie, we are eliminating the assailants. Storm in three-two-one—"
Marcus lead the fire fight and Shale hardly needed the direction as he dove in after Alex from where he'd been scaling the cliff.
Alex's eyes were noticeably unfocused and blinking blearily as he cut through the ropes binding Alex's feet.
Blood from Alex's wounds was leaking into the water aa Alex lost consciousness. Grabbed him by the waist, he pumped his legs and swam quickly, hauling the dead weight to the surface.
Thankfully, Beta team made themselves ready on the shore with ropes to pull them in.
He laid Alex down to assess: Not breathing, thready pulse, he noted with concern and started CPR as his team diligently secured the area while he worked.
By the third round of breaths, Alex turned over and began coughing up water, much to the relief of team Beta and their leader.
Alex was still disoriented but glanced over at Shale; voice scratchy and hardly audible, Alex retorted, "If I'm dead, you're the ugliest angel I've ever seen."
Shale chucked. "Welcome back to the living, boss."
Alex nodded contently and closed his eyes, falling blissfully unconscious. In that moment, Shale registered how young Alex looked. Almost like a teenager being woken up for school and needed a precious few extra minutes to nap—but the mission did not stop for his drifting thoughts.
"Orion is alive," Shale called into comms, "he's roughed up a bit. Getting him out of here."
"Affirmative," he heard Marcus grit out with the sound of gunshots in the background. "Target spotted. Finishing up shortly. Don't wait up. Get him out."
Two soldiers gently moved Alex onto a sturdy blanket so he could be carried without being jostled much. Back at the van, medics worked quickly to staunch bleeding and stitch up the cuts.
Sometime later, Alex woke up with a generous amount of painkillers coursing through his veins.
Shale was dozing in a chair at his side while guards stood by the door.
Alex dismissed them to be outside as Shale opened his eyes, fully alert, though Alex noted an underlying exhaustion to his bedside guard.
Shale regarded him with faux hostility. "You better not make cliff diving your new hobby. It'll make our lives very difficult and Mr. Gregorovich incredibly unhappy. How about next time you want to go swimming we can arrange for something more fun?"
Alex choked out a laugh. "Nah, RTI took all the fun out of swimming, but I'll keep that in mind if I ever change my mind.
"What'd the doc say about all of this?"
Shale looked uncomfortable for a moment but relayed, "Two bruised ribs and a few nasty cuts. Mild lung inflammation, but that bit is to be expected...you took in a lot of water. It was close. That cut in your thigh took some time to sort out. Good thing I was a donor match for your blood. Hell, Yassen likely considered that when hiring us."
"Probably," Alex conceded. Yassen actively achieved that level of detail, particularly regarding Alex's safety.
In keeping up their charade of humor thinking back to the CPR, Alex snarkily commented pursing his lips in distaste, "Ugh! And if you're my true love's kiss, I want a redo."
Shale barked out a laugh. "Hey, with you and the trouble you cause, I'd be happy never doing that again. You're not my type either."
Shale then pulled a phone from his pant pocket.
"Mr. Gregorovich requested to speak to you when you woke up."
Alex grumbled but reached out a hand for Shale's phone—his own phone must've either been too waterlogged or left at the bottom of the bay.
Shale left to offer some privacy and Yassen picked up after the first ring.
"Hi," Alex said softly.
"Alex." His curt reply gave away his concern. Alex knew his anger was not directed at him. "You sound well. Status."
He supposed that was the Yassen equivalent of 'glad you're still alive. How are you?'
Alex knew Yassen likely required Sagitta to provide status updates on his condition but it never seemed to satisfy him until Alex was up and able to report in himself.
Perhaps it was the medicine or the exhaustion, Alex took a more casual approach with the status report.
"They gave me the good stuff this time, though I think I'll avoid wearing shorts or tee shirts for a while; the stitches look gross. Ken didn't make it easy for the medics."
"Ken?"
Alex cringed. He didn't intend to mention his nickname for the target but, again, blaming the meds, he plowed on with the explanation.
"Ken Blankenship. The guy looked like him. You know the commentator from MXC?" Silence followed and Alex chirped in a brief, "never mind," and hoped Yassen didn't mind too much the lack of brain-to-mouth filter.
"Alex, follow the doctor's orders. Danube will assist with your transport. The spare bedroom is yours unless you wish to recover elsewhere.
"Perhaps next time you infiltrate a facility, you will remember to take appropriate protection, otherwise you will permanently stationed as a secretary in Malagosto. Understood?"
Alex smiled at that. "I understand."
"Strive to stay out of trouble these next few days. I expect nothing short of success."
"Yes, sir."
A day later Alex found himself wheeled out of the hospital by a chatty Marcus and the combined forces of Sagitta and Danube as escort.
Marcus was updating Alex on their new instructions regarding security. Under no circumstances was Alex to wander off into the jungle alone again.
Marcus, Shale, and Adams were all to receive additional training in becoming Alex's new babysitters and required to attend lessons in mitigating hostility, extensive medical practices, and escaping captivity as a guardian of another.
"Is that in prep for further lessons in ass-wiping and tucking me into bed each night?" Alex was less than thrilled at the new protocol.
"If it keeps your ass out of trouble, sure thing, boss," Shale interjected. "Better than seeing you end up swimming next to another bluebottle jellyfish."
Alex rolled his eyes, playing up the insolent teenager look. Of course they'd know everything in his file by now, he thought miserly. "That was one time." Shale smirked at the remark but didn't comment further.