The night was cool and brisk. The air was still and filled with the sounds of insects. The sky was lit with stars and the crescent moon. The occasional chirp from a bird could be heard in the distance. The ground, now damp from summers rain, cushioning her body. The shadows of the trees slowly tracked across the ground hiding what lay behind them. The road that cut through the forest like an old scar, now slopped and muddied, watched by silent death.
Skye looked up to see the stars through the canopy overhead. She had been in the same spot for two days. After Jack had dropped her off at the old abandoned cabin, she walked for the rest of the day and into the night. Taking her time to be cautious. She knew her path should avoid any unwanted attention but caution was the word of the day.
Once she found the road she quickly located a good position to setup for the shot. A small ridge, covered in vegetation, that allowed her to see nearly a quarter mile down either direction the road traveled. Placing herself between two shrubs that just ever so slightly parted as they approached the ground. A little modification and she could hide herself perfectly.
She inspected the road and could tell that no tanks had traveled through since the rain had started. She traveled up and down the road 2 miles in both directions, placing motion detectors. They didn't know when the tanks would leave the base or how long they were gone for. Her task was to wait for seven days and if they didn't show, head back to be picked up.
Skye brought her gaze back down to the road. She checked the volume on her ear piece that was tied to the motion detectors. Once satisfied, she looked over her rifle. It's long barrel extending past the stock several inches. The end made larger by the silencer attached. The larger than normal scope mounted above the action. Allowing for enhanced night time vision. Being a predator, Skye already had excellent night time vision. The addition of night vision optics only enhanced the details at longer distances. The rifle itself was a semi-automatic, magazine fed instrument of precision. The powerful magnum ammunition it fired was more than capable of hitting targets at 1,200 yards.
She had not seen any sign of the tanks in the last two days. The lack of good sleep and good food was beginning to wear on her. The thought of special forces operations was always something romanticized and 99% of the time false. The reality was what she faced now. Very little sleep, hardly any comfort, what never seemed to be enough food and water and the constant fear of being found or worse, failure.
Once satisfied that her equipment was working properly and everything would work out in the end, she laid her head on her forearm and closed her eyes. Trying to rest. Despite having a thick coat, the rain had seeped its way to her skin. Allowing the slightest breeze to cause her to shiver.
"There's always tomorrow." She thought and sleep slowly took over.
BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!
Skye was jolted awake by the sudden screeching in her ear. Her eye's shot open in horror. She didn't know how long the motion detector had been going off before she finally woke. She pressed the button to silence the noise. Realizing the indicator showed the approaching vehicle was coming from her left she shifted slightly to aim the rifle in that direction.
"Please don't be too late!" she whispered to herself. Hoping the alarm woke her in time. The sensors were two miles down but even a slow lumbering tank can cover that distance quickly. She turned her ears in the direction of the sensor that was triggered. Slowly a faint sound turned into the unmistakable grind of gravel and mud under the unyielding weight of tanks. She let out a soft sigh, relieved the alarm from the detector had done its job. When they finally turned the corner, Skye was surprised by what she saw.
The briefing she was given said that it was always 5-7 heavy tanks. Tanks that were slow but could take a heavy beating. And had the fire power to reach out at great distances. However, what she saw was far more than just heavy tanks. In the front of the small parade was a small light weight reconnaissance tank. With its low profile and light cannon, it was meant for quick maneuvers to out flank or surprise an enemy before they could react. Followed by a medium tank that wasn't as well protected or armed as the heavy tank but was faster. Then came a heavy tank followed by an anti-aircraft(AA) tank and an armored personnel carrier(APC). Behind them were two fuel trucks.
As soon as the surprise of what she saw wore off, she lined up her sites with the medium tank. It offered a larger area that wasn't splashed with mud. The mud would make the tracking device more visible and prevent it from sticking. She slowly squeezed the trigger, keeping her breathing in check, suddenly she felt the rifle recoil against her shoulder and heard the muffled blast, thanks to the silencer. She could see the round impact on the turret of the tank. It looked like the tracker stuck. Just to be safe she hand loaded the second special round and release the bolt forward. Taking aim at the larger heavy tank. An easy target. A second shot and the second-round hit.
Once she verified with her scope that the tracker stayed in place she physically froze. The tanks were starting to get close and pass her position. Holding her breath, she watched as the small parade of vehicles passed her by. Once they rounded the turn and were out of sight she slumped to the ground, breathing heavily. The adrenaline rush of having them wake her and then tensing so quickly preparing for the shot made her feel exhausted. She allowed herself a moment to regain control of her emotions and body. Once she felt that there was no danger of the vehicles returning, she began policing her items. Gathering them together and packing up. She knew she should wait till dark to move but decided instead to move out now. She could take her time and get back to the abandoned cabin near nightfall. She planned to use it as a shelter for the night. Giving her at least some decent rest before being crammed back into the box that awaited her.
Once her bag was packed she put the ghilli suit back on and went to retrieve the motion detectors. Finding where she placed them was easy enough. She pulled out her GPS and checked her coordinates and using her memory to get a good bearing on the direction of the pickup point. "Now to get out of here!" she thought and started the hike back to the cabin.
She had been walking for the better part of the day. Her legs were burning, muscles screaming in protest. She had pushed herself hard to get there before night fall so she could set up a perimeter to give her some safety. As she moved halfway down a hill side she heard something. She froze in place, ears turned to the direction the noise came from, listening intently. Voices approaching. She looked to her right. Seven wolves and three coyotes were walking between the two hills she was trying to traverse. They came closer and closer, staying in a line formation, until they were at the bottom of the two hills she was standing on.
Silent, still, don't move, don't blink.
Eyes watching, eyes that think.
At the front of the formation was a very young wolf with a lieutenant's rank on his collar, and a clearly frustrated sergeant standing beside him. They rest looked tired and frustrated as well. Turning to each other and continuing conversations, not caring enough to look around.
Heavy heart, an afterthought.
Steel and powder will do their part.
The older sergeant seemed to be trying to explain something to the young officer about navigation. He unhooked his large pack and let it drop to the ground. Skye tensed her grip on her rifle and readied herself to move. She was standing in the open. The only thing saving her, the fact she looked like a bush.
Burdens heavy, triggers lite.
Ready to run, ready to fight.
She scanned around her looking for a place to jump to for cover. They would have to look directly at her to see her. She contemplated shooting first. The camouflage she wore and silenced rifle would give her the element of surprise.
Always defend, and slow to start.
Steel and powder will do their part.
She waited. Watching the group for signs that they had spotted her. In the time, they stood there she could tell that most of the small group were very young. Probably fresh recruits. Like this apparently useless lieutenant of theirs. The moments passed, fatigue was rapidly gripping her.
Eyes weary, muscles taught.
Always leery, and don't get caught.
In his frustration, the sergeant turned away from the lieutenant and towards her. His paw across his eyes rubbing his brow. He let out a deep sigh. Dropping his arm and slowly opened his eyes. Skye could see his lids open wide. She raised her rifle, and watched him breath his last breath.
Hands steady, they don't depart.
Steel and powder have done their part.
Jack was on the road. Part of his cover as a small delivery truck was to make several stops at different stores surrounding the military base. As with any large military facility small communities had popped up and thrived on the otherwise bored population of soldiers. He took his time as he moved about. Making deliveries and loading items to take back. Trying to barter now and then to keep himself busy.
Suddenly his phone began to vibrate in his pocket. He fetched the device out and saw a text message from an unknown number. The message read two words, white rabbit. The code that Skye had activated the pickup beacon. He turned the truck around and headed for the pickup point. Calculating his current location, he figured he'd be there in about two and a half hours. But it was still a couple of days early and a couple of hours of daylight left.
"I hope she's alright." He muttered under his breath, and started to increase his speed.
Skye stood in the same place she had been. A faint trail of smoke coming from the now hot barrel of her rifle. Her heavy breathing causing it to move up and down in unison with her body. Every muscle in her body quivering. She had taken down all ten of the wolves and coyotes. They never even fired back at her. After dropping the sergeant and lieutenant with two quick shots. She began plucking the remaining eight out. Eventually they started to run or hide, but it was no use. Skye's superior training and reflexes allowed her to extinguish them without mercy.
Finally managing to push the adrenaline aside she moved quickly to where the first of her victims lay now perfectly still. She searched them over quickly, knocking the sergeants helmet over. She saw a picture on the inside of the helmet of a family. She looked away. Not finding anything of interest on either body she picked up the map. The map had a course charted that should have taken them far from where they are now. She looked at the top where a title was printed. Land Nav Course Leaders Section. They were training just like she suspected. Then something clicked in her mind. She looked at both bodies. Neither had ammunition in their pouches. She picked up one of the rifles. The magazine was empty. She looked up at the young leader. His face pressed down in the forest ground. He couldn't have been more than 20. She went to look at the older wolf. He had landed on his back, face looking towards the sky. His eyes were still open, empty. She looked again at the picture he carried inside his helmet. A female wolf with two young pups. His family.
Her heavy breathing returned and threatened to cause her to hyperventilate. She dropped the rifle and pulled the device Jack had given from a pocket pressing the button hard several times. Then placing it back in her pocket, she grabbed her rifle and darted in the direction she was traveling leaving behind the bloody mess she had made. Her eyes were wet and watering but she didn't dare close them.
All her time in the military had been spent during a time of relative peace. The missions she had performed prior to this one never involved having to pull the trigger. The fact that she had this time was only due to her training taking over. She hardly remembered what happened. If she hadn't been holding the rifle herself she wouldn't have believed it had.
She ran until her legs gave out. Pausing only long enough to get back to her feet and found she could no longer run. Shuffling her feet as quickly as she could to reach the cabin. It took nearly two hours to reach the relatively safe haven. She didn't dare go inside. Instead, she took a position inside the tree line where she could watch the road approaching and waited. The run here allowed her to clear her mind of what she'd done. Now she concentrated on slowing her breathing and resting her muscles that now ached beyond belief.
As she brought herself to a calmed state she could see lights flickering through the trees. Soon she could see the truck that had brought her here. She waited. After coming to a stop, the driver door opened. Out stepped a silver hare with black stripes.
"Jack!" she called out. Her voice hoarse.
Jack spun on his heals his hand reaching behind his back and under his shirt instinctively. He paused once he realized the source of the voice.
"Skye?" he called back. Still gripping the pistol at the small of his back.
"Here." She called now walking towards him.
"Is everything alright?" He glanced her over. Her suit was partially torn in places. She looked exhausted, her eyes red and puffy.
"I ran into a patrol and…" she stopped. Hesitating to say what really happened.
"Did anyone get away?" he asked. Looking into her eyes, he could see the horror that was written all over her face.
"Quickly we have to move now!" He began leading her to the back of the truck.
"No." suddenly finding herself able to speak again.
"No, they didn't or no we can't leave?" Jack asked still opening the canvas on the back of the truck.
"No, they didn't." she said softly after a moment's pause. Her eyes now drifting to the ground. The guilt of what she'd done too heavy for her head to bear.
"All the same we should leave now." Jack noticing her actions saw enough to know what she was going through mentally, but not having a full understanding. "Take the suit off I'll pack your equipment back in the crate."
Skye climbed into the back of the truck and began to remove the guille suit. Still wearing the special outfit that had been made for her she went and sat next to the hidden compartment.
Jack quickly placed everything into the box they had used to smuggle the weapon and equipment across the border. Moving over to Skye he opened the latches and put his paw on her shoulder.
"Are you ready?" he asked. She nodded her head and squeezed into the small box.
Once she was settled he closed the lid and secured the hatches. Climbed out of the back of the truck and back into the cab. Once there he let out a deep sigh and placed the vehicle in gear. With his excellent hearing, me could make out the faintest of sounds coming from the compartment.
Feeling the vehicle starting to move, Skye began to breath heavily again. It didn't take long before she started getting hitches in her breath following shortly by sobs. Every time she closed her eyes she saw the faces of the soldiers she murdered in cold blood and the now widowed family staring back at her.