BDP

Getting over the wall had been easy. They probably could have gotten Father Allen in without notice as well, but he had opted to stay behind to keep their path back out clear of interference. At the time it didn't look like they would need him to do so, but it had been a tactically sound decision. After all, the rules changed in combat very quickly.

Their current position certainly illustrated that truth quite well. They had made it to the central building undetected, but once they crossed the threshold, everything changed. Here the guards were more alert, the monitoring devices more plentiful than had been indicated on the intelligence report.

Ok, that happened. Intelligence reports were notoriously full of holes, if not downright false information. The training seminar ought to replicate field situations as closely as possible. No problem. Mobius dropped one of the guards from behind, and as the man fell, his automatic fired into the wall. The resulting chew marks in the wall were not from blanks.

With a muffled curse the unconscious man was searched. The automatic and the pistol on his hip both held live rounds. There were no blanks on his person anywhere. The Dragons exchanged looks of anger over the unconscious guard. Their instincts had been right; they were being fucked.

Taking the weapons and the extra rounds, the Dragons fanned out, covering both directions, knowing the short burst would bring anyone within earshot. They waited patiently for five minutes, but no one came. Either no one had heard, or more likely, they had orders to hold their positions.

Hand signals flew fast and furious as the Black Dragons debated their course of action. Should they leave now, while they still could? The live ammo put a very different spin on the situation. Most were for bugging out, but not all.

Nottingham made a gesture for attention, pulling all eyes to his. Breaking the silence with a harsh and intense whisper, Ian voiced his concerns. "We should not leave without information or supplies. If we depart now we will have neither. I think we can all agree that our government intended for us to die here."

Nottingham paused as the others nodded their agreement of his assessment, "There will hardly be a pick-up scheduled for us, unless it's there to mop up any survivors who escape this place. We will need provisions, transportation, and reliable maps of the terrain. The only place we can be certain to acquire these things is here."

"I agree. Lee, Reese, double back and secure the entrance. Taurins, Niccoli, Beck, you three take the generators offline. Hunting in the dark will bother them a great deal more than it will us." Mobius curled his lips up in a predatory grin.

"What do you want us to do about the guards we come across?" Beck asked casually.

"Give them the fate they intended for us. Strike without mercy. Once we have secured the compound, we can strip it of anything useful, get to a safe distance, and decide how to deal with those who have betrayed us." Mobius met the eyes of his men, the promise of vengeance stark on his face.

"Should we assume that our original target is here? There is every chance that the situation they sent us into is as real as the heat these guys are packing." Rook raised a brow at Moby.

"Hmmm, that I cannot say. We will have to sweep that area anyway, so why don't you and Nottingham take that side. Be alert for possible prisoners. Everyone else come with me. We'll take the area marked as living quarters first, and move through the common area."

Splitting up into several smaller groups would give them a bit of flexibility, and make it hard for the enemy to capture or eliminate them all. In narrow confines like this, it wasn't as if a great deal of firepower could be brought to bear anyway. Their best bet was to move in ones and twos in silence, to come upon their foes unaware, kill them, and move on to the next. Mobius didn't have to tell his men to use knives or hand to hand unless there was no other option, they all knew that gunfire would give away their position.

"Switch to channel 3 on the radios, as I am going to assume that they are monitoring the standard channel. They might not think to check the other frequencies. Even so, only use the radio to report an area secure, or to ask for assistance. Go." Mobius said, and the four teams separated.

Rook and Nottingham moved silently, every sense alert. The two Dragons encountered no resistance as they stalked down sterile white hallways. The very lack of guards made them wonder if perhaps the 'prisoner to liberate' had been another hoax.

Once they made it to the section that was supposed to house the captive they were to liberate, it became clear that the situation was different than they had begun to believe. Two guards lay dead, cause of death readily apparent in the ruined eye sockets. Someone had stabbed them at close range and escaped. The warmth of the bodies put their demise at sometime in the last ten minutes.

"Well, that explains where all the guards are for this sector, they're out chasing the prisoner. Looks like the bastards got shivved, which argues for a Spec 4 to be down here somewhere." Rook signed to Nottingham.

Ian nodded and signaled for him to watch while he examined the cell. He pushed through the half-open bars and stopped. There was something... familiar. A faint trace of scent teased at his memory, but he could not place it. The room was much more comfortable than any cell he'd ever seen. The prisoner, whoever they had been, had obviously been of some importance to have so many accommodations.

Most notably of these was the enclosed bathroom, which he was going to have to check. The door was ajar, and he could see the edge of a small sink and a cube shower. Moving carefully into the tiny room, Nottingham looked behind the door and then inside the shower. He noticed there were toiletry items inside, another mark of special treatment. The shampoo and shower gel were floral, which caused him to raise a brow.

On his way back out, he paused by the bed and sniffed the pillow. The scent he found so familiar was stronger here, but it was partially masked by the floral aroma of the bath products. Who on Earth could possibly be imprisoned here that he would know well enough to recognize their scent, but not well enough to know who they were?

Frustrated, Nottingham rejoined Rook in the hallway. The two shared a look and Ian signaled for them to continue down the hall. When they caught up with the escapee, all their questions would be answered. Loitering around here was telling them nothing.