{Normal POV}
(Tuesday, April 11, 2023-5:45 pm)
[Berk; Troy & Hayden's Apartment]
Five long weeks had passed since Troy got the dreaded phone call that Hayden, his husband, had gone MIA. Troy spent March 5th, crying in the apartment after asking nicely for everyone to leave so he could get his emotions in check and not go off the handle on any of them by accident. Troy typically wasn't someone who released how he felt through tears, but he couldn't help it this time. Hayden was missing in action, and after four days since the label had made official on March 2nd, there was no information to locate Hayden at all. Now, it's been five weeks as of Saturday, April 8th that Hayden's been MIA, and still nothing to confirm what the situation was. Troy didn't know if Hayden was captured, which would make him a POW, or Prisoner of War. Also, Troy didn't know if Hayden was hurt from the grenade. Hayden could have hit his head hard enough to forget things. There were just too many possibilities, and the worst two would be that Hayden is captured or dead. Escaping enemy forces was not a simple task, and many died in captivity from developing infections, getting sick, or just getting killed. Cody called Troy from Skype every two days with an update on the matter, but it was never anything different; nothing heard or seen about Hayden.
Troy was fully healed after four months. Troy no longer needed the crutches or physical therapy appointments because he could walk normally without a limp. The leg might always be a bit weak due to the initial break because there were three of them, not one. However, none of that bothered Troy; the leg was strong enough to take on the tests he underwent from Fort Archian. Troy passed and was allowed to stay in the Marines, though, to Troy; it didn't matter. All he wanted was Hayden home. Today was another one where everyone had come over to check on him; it had become a weekly event where everyone would bring some kind of snack, drink, or food dish, then hang out with Troy to keep him company.
"Has there been any word on Hayden?" Vivian asked gently. Troy didn't want to talk about it, but Spencer and Vivian were Hayden's parents, so it wasn't fair to exclude them when Troy was the one getting all the updates.
"I haven't heard from Cody since Sunday after another search that ended with nothing," Troy replied.
"How long do they hold these searches for?" Tyler questioned.
"What do you mean, bro?" Rylee looked at him.
"When someone goes MIA, how long do they keep the search open to find them?" Tyler rephrased.
"As long as it takes," Gabriel said as they looked at him. "A POW/MIA file for a soldier, warrior, seamen, aviator, guardsmen, whatever they are referred to as, stays openly investigated until concrete facts are found. Such as a body, remains, the person themselves, or can be said for sure that they would have died from old age,"
"So, they won't stop looking for Hayden, or anyone else who has gone missing?" Avery inquired.
"Correct," Gabriel nodded. "It is the mission statement that they are looked for until they are brought home,"
"I suppose that's a little comforting," Rachel sighed. Troy hadn't really said anything; it bothered him to no end wondering what happened to his husband. Alpha Company was home as of Monday, March 6th, 2023. Troy went out to welcome them back, but it was easy for them to see that Hayden not being among them hurt Troy a lot. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door as Troy looked up, then he stood and moved towards the door, opening it to reveal Donovan.
"Commander? What are you doing here? Have they found Hayden? Is he okay?" Troy asking rapidly.
Donovan sighed, and Troy instantly got nervous that he was about to be told that Hayden was found dead. "Sergeant, please settle down. I've only come by to check on you; I haven't heard anything about Lieutenant Haddock-Raseri," Troy relaxed some, but was still upset. "May I come in?" Troy stepped aside and let Donovan in. Troy closed the door and faced everyone.
"This is Commander Donovan Bludvist; he's the Alpha Company leader. Sir, these are my parents, little brother, his girlfriend and my niece. Over there are Hayden's parents and Godfather/Unofficial Uncle, and then a few of our mutual friends. Well, the one," he motioned to Shane, "is Hayden's cousin," Troy introduced.
"Pleasure to meet you," Dustin shook the man's hand. "I'm Dustin Raseri, my wife, Rachel, and our youngest son, Cole. Beside him is his girlfriend, and daughter,"
"The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Raseri," Donovan replied.
"Spencer Haddock, Hayden's father. And this is my wife, Vivian. Hayden's Godfather is Gabriel," Spencer stood next to greet the man.
"Shane, Avery, Rylee, Tyler, Drew, Fisher, and Hailey," Shane said, pointing to each person he named off.
"Good to meet you all," Donovan smiled a bit. "And how are you holding up, Sergeant?"
"Do you really need to ask that, sir? My husband is somewhere in Afghanistan, still missing. How do you think I'm doing?" Troy sighed.
"I know, but I was asked to make sure you're alright. I know it's not an easy time for you," Donovan looked at Troy.
"Of course it's not. Hayden should have been home in January…All of you were supposed to be, and then this…Wouldn't have happened," Troy faced him.
"Us staying past January was not my doing, Sergeant. You know that you report to me as your CO, but I have people above me I have to take orders from too," Donovan reminded.
"And I understand that, but I still hold the right to be upset about it. Especially at the end of February, Hayden said you all got to return on the 6th, but Hayden and Cody had to stay until August for Special Ops," Troy remarked.
"I only command Hayden and Cody when they are doing things for Alpha, Troy. Special Ops Force is an entirely different group, and you know that. Hayden and Cody answer to whoever runs that. There was nothing I could do to alter their decision. Your husband is a remarkable, skilled, young man; he ran a lot of missions to aid in the necessary steps to end this war. Which would be for the good of everyone involved; military or civilian on both sides," Donovan said.
"What can you tell me about that level nine operative?" Troy questioned.
"Nothing, Sergeant," Donovan replied.
"I don't buy that, Commander. Level nine missions are reserved for gathering information and locating specific targets for capture," Donovan flinched a bit as Troy shrugged. "Come on, I do my research. I'm not going to say or do anything, sir, but I want to know what happened to my husband,"
Donovan closed his eyes. "I could get into serious trouble for this,"
"Someone at HQ is going to be in a lot more trouble if I have to go find the answers myself and then reaming whoever is responsible for this a new asshole," Troy informed.
"Lieutenant's Haddock-Raseri and Kongur with their team of four others were sent on several missions to locate the enemy headquarters base in the Kandahar Province and find the leader of said station. It took months to find this place, and the task your husband went missing on was the one to infiltrate and gather information about the leader and where he was. The ultimate goal in all this was to capture the guy leading strikes in the province, but it wasn't scheduled for that night; just to locate the man and keep doing this until we had a designated, confirmed area. If this man is captured and brought in, the attacks in Kandahar, which is the second largest city in Afghanistan, would stop. Raseri," Donovan explained.
He took a breath now to continue. "That is what your husband was doing. However, when Hayden went missing near this place; all work on that previous goal stopped as it's been made clear that these people know we've finally found them," Donovan finished.
"What you're saying is that this particular mission is going back to square one with months or years of work lost?" Gabriel inquired. "Sorry. Colonel Gabriel Forger, Barbaric Archipelago Army," the man stated. "I understand how it works. I wasn't Special Ops, but I get how it's done,"
"Yes, that is correct," Donovan stated with a nod. "This job began two years ago, and Hayden's team was strongly recommended when we arrived for his success in Syria SOF missions. Hayden and the teams he led did more work in six months than anyone else in a year and a half,"
Troy sighed but managed a smile. "That's my husband for you. Hard worker, very focused on his given tasks. I remember that he felt he couldn't even do military life, was adamant about believing that…"
"He strives to be what everyone said he could be and do in the Marines, what is expected of all them," Gabriel mumbled. "Hayden has always been a people pleaser, and follow all rules. He takes it hard when he fails,"
"I have noticed," Troy closed his eyes. "What's the situation with the level nine now?"
"We're not sure. HQ feels that all work will need to be restarted to find this person again. The compound is too heavily guarded to get close since Hayden went missing. No doubt that they've moved this target for his safety. At least I assume that is what's going on based on the information received from Lieutenant Kongur and the other four who were with him at the time Hayden disappeared," Donovan informed.
"Am I free to guess that if the level nine involved a recon infiltration in securing a location of the target, and the overall objective is to remove this man, then the capture part of the mission is considered level ten?" Gabriel wondered.
"Correct," Donovan nodded.
"Would Hayden have been sent on that?" Rachel questioned.
"I am unsure if the Lieutenant would have been sent to do the job or not; those details had not been worked out. This finding the base and guy deal was supposed to continue for another couple of weeks to make sure there wouldn't be any surprises. If I had to take a guess, they might have sent in another team of more advanced Special Ops Military forces to complete the task. But, I don't know," Donovan shrugged his shoulders once, then dropped them. "Sergeant; I know it's not what you want to hear, but it might be time to accept Hayden isn't going to be found. As you first suggested; he could be a prisoner of war. And as long as this war continues and we don't know where he is; Hayden could remain a captive like many others…Or end up being killed, or dying if any injuries are bad enough,"
"I refuse to believe it, Commander," Troy glared.
"Believe it or not; that is fact," Donovan reminded.
"I don't care!" Troy yelled angrily. Donovan stepped back now. "I swore Hayden would always have my support, and I wouldn't abandon or give up on him. Hayden is alive; I feel that. And he'll keep fighting no matter what! You believe your facts or whatever, but I'll trust in my gut and heart. It's never let me down when it comes to Hayden, and it won't now. My husband will return, Commander. He might be severely hurt and captured, but he's alive and will come back. I bet my life on that belief," Troy stormed off.
"I'm just trying to prepare him for the worst possible outcome…" Donovan sighed.
"We know, but Troy won't believe any of that without hard evidence, Donovan. He gets that from me, unfortunately as I'm a cop…" Dustin said.
"I'll be back to check on him in a few days," Donovan then exited the apartment as everyone else just sat there, hoping Troy might come back out. Something told them that he likely wouldn't because he knew deep down that Donovan was right.
. . .
(Friday, April 14, 2023-7:35 am)
[Kandahar Province; Barbarki Outpost Entry Gate]
The entrance to the Barbarki Military Outpost in Kandahar, Afghanistan was closely guarded by many Soldiers and Warriors of the Barbaric Archipelago Islands Marine Corps and Army. Getting in required the utmost security, so when six unidentified figures approached; it was guards up. Two people were walking ahead of the other four. Five out of the six were in Afghan Military attire, the sixth wore a tan t-shirt, open coat, brown boots, and the camp pattern colors for the Archipelago Marines as his pants. This sixth man was holding onto one of the Aghan soldiers, clearly wounded and weak, unable to stand on his own. The remaining four behind them consisted of two soldiers carrying a chained man between them, and one more stood behind with a gun up.
"Identify yourselves!" a soldier called. The man being assisted to walk managed to stand taller with a firm look in his eyes.
"Second Lieutenant Hayden Haddock-Raseri. Four Afghan friendlies, and one enemy prisoner," the man, Hayden said.
"Lieutenant Haddock-Raseri?" they asked, whispering beginning.
"You've been missing for six weeks…" one remarked.
"I was captive…And broke out," Hayden informed bringing an arm around his midsection.
"Get a medic!" one of the Army soldiers called as a few others did as ordered when they saw that Hayden was bleeding badly, in pain, and could barely stand without help from the friendly.
"Why did you take a prisoner?" a Marine questioned.
Hayden's tired, heavy eyes glanced momentarily. "Tell Major General Nathaniel Hendersen that the target of Operation: Free Kandahar Province is in custody…" seconds later, Hayden's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he collapsed back into the arms of the Afghan friendly, ultimately passed out.