CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE: IMPOSTOR

The needle was pegged out at 140 miles per hour; the engine roared near redline as the pistons fired away and the tires kicked up a thick dust cloud as the motorcycle sped along the barren dirt highway. At least most of this highway stretch is a straightaway, Snake-Eyes thought, cruising on the… not stolen, but "acquired" U.S. military issue motorcycle. The Flagg was too slow to do the job so he was forced to improvise.

Especially when members of his team were at risk. Snake-Eyes knew that he had to get to Sierra Team as soon as possible and let them know there was an infiltrator. Not only did he have to be stopped, but his very presence in the same city as Sierra Team threatened their mission.

Shana… Scarlett… he couldn't help but think about her as he throttled the gas, desperate to get to her… and her team, as soon as possible. An infiltrator. A Cobra agent. This changes things. How was our Intel unable to pick up on this earlier? Snake-Eyes knew that it would only take one person to wipe out an unsuspecting group. And according to Jinx, the group consisted of three rookies and only one veteran – not to mention a veteran who had a small role to play on this particular mission. Ripcord, you'd better be looking after them, or so help me, I'll kill you…

Pulling out his secure GPS with the coordinates of Dr. Walkers mansion he downloaded, thanks to information from Jinx, Snake-Eyes figured that was the first place to start before he went directly to Walker Innovations. He'd reach the mansion just before Urbak since it was on the outskirts of town. Snake-Eyes knew that he'd be losing time by making the stop, but it'd be worth it if he could find out more information about this Cobra agent. After all, getting to Urbak was only half the problem. The other half was finding the infiltrator.

The sun had begun to rise over the horizon by the time Snake-Eyes arrived at the mansion. The sheer size of the mansion, as well as the land it sat upon, was remarkable. Unlike the rest of the desolate and war-torn Borovia, at least from what Snake-Eyes had seen anyway, this place was untouched by battle and as green as the forest up by his cabin in the Sierra Mountains. Impressive. This Dr. Walker must have a lot of money to maintain the landscape. And a lot of pull to keep it protected during the civil wars.

Snake wasn't worried about the mansion being fenced in; climbing a wall was simple enough. However, the true issue was the cameras along the fence line. Judging by the number of surveillance equipment surrounding the mansion, security would be challenging to navigate and defeat. Invisible laser sensors, thermal detectors… This would take some work to get in and, worse yet, take up a lot of precious time.

He had pulled off to the side of the road, still sitting on his bike with one leg on the ground, carefully scanning along the fence line as his motorcycle idled with a low rumble. No more had he begun to dismount his iron horse as the mansion gates began to slowly open. An all-black Cadillac SUV with dark tinted windows pulled out of the front gates, turning down the road in the opposite direction of where Snake had tucked away. Snake-Eyes already had the cover of a large shrub, so he knew he wouldn't be seen; ducking down over the handlebars, he pulled out a pair of binoculars. Despite the dark tint to the windows, he could just barely make out the driver.

Woman driver, judging by her shoulder-length hair. Local males in this country rarely have long hair like that. Single occupancy... Strange. A female driver in a nice vehicle like that in a male-dominated society like Borovia; I wasn't expecting that. She must be either really powerful, or a man in disguise. Either way, time to make her acquaintance.

Snake-Eyes crouched down low on the bike, cautiously pulling back onto the road.

XXXXX

She's seen me, he thought to himself. He had been tailing her at an average pace for several miles, but without warning the black car sped up. Not like I had much cover from the sunlight on this flat stretch of road, and couldn't exactly blend in with other vehicles since we're the only two on the road. He knew it was inevitable. Twisting the throttle and leaning down against the gas tank, he accelerated to match her speed, taking off like a rocket. If I have to shoot her tires out, at least there won't be anyone around here within miles to witness it.

Snake-Eyes slowly reached for the twenty-two strapped to his hip. Just as his fingers wrapped around the grip of the weapon, the black car slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road, coming to a stop. Snake released his grip, leaving his Berretta in its holster.

This could get interesting, Snake thought, analyzing the situation. Pulling over behind her and towards the right side of her vehicle, intentionally in her blind spot, Snake-Eyes kicked the kickstand and dismounted the motorcycle cautiously, swinging his leg back and over, and never taking his eyes off of the driver. Snake pulled out his M-16 and cautiously moved forward to the vehicle.

The driver stepped out of the black vehicle, her hands in the air.

Very pretty, Snake-Eyes thought, as the blond-haired lady walked slowly but deliberately towards him. Definitely not Borovian.

The lady spoke, with a foreign accent. Russian? No…Czech… She spoke to him with confidence; she even had a slight smile as her lip barely curved upward. Even as his weapon was fully trained on her... squarely focused on her chest, she did not appear to be afraid of him. "They told me you were coming. I wasn't sure it was you until you chased after me. Your General Hawk notified me. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Vorona."

Snake-Eyes began to think about what she said, still pointing his weapon at her. Steeler couldn't contact Sierra Team due to their mission risk, but I bet he had Firewall patch him through to Hawk. And of course with one phone call from Hawk… who knows what kind of International agents he'd be able to get a hold of. I'll buy that. But first let's see what she has to say before I trust her.

Snake-Eyes lowered his weapon.

XXXXX

I can't believe this. A stunned Snake-Eyes held up the tailgate of the SUV with one hand, shaking his head as he looked in the back. He turned to Vorona in disbelief, with his hands halfway raised, as if to say, "What happened?"

He noticed that her face was calm. To the average person, she would appear to be emotionless. But Snake-Eyes knew better. With a closer look, he could tell her eyes were almost a bit watery; she didn't shed a tear, but it seemed as if she was on the verge.

More death. It follows me wherever I go. It looks like his death affected her; she must have known him somehow. Probably worked with him on the job.

Vorona took her time responding to Snake-Eyes; the truth was it was hard for anyone to see a dead body. Especially when breaking the news to a friend of the victim… someone who knew the deceased. Even if only briefly.

Just because the movies always portrayed FBI, CIA, and especially KGB agents as emotionless stone soldiers when anyone was killed – even one of their own – it didn't mean that the real world was that way. Sure, there were some that were ice cold, and the death of others had no affect on them. But that was rarely the case, and normally reserved only for the seriously traumatized or the psychotic. Yet here was this American soldier who she had only seen briefly… not even one of her own countrymen. But he knew it was hard for her to accept his death nonetheless… especially knowing he was fighting for a good cause, and that his killer was still out there.

And Vorona loved Hollywood movies… well, any decently made American flick, or even B-movies or independent film… but she knew that was the one thing that every good screenwriter always screwed up.

"I didn't know until after your team had left. I wanted to warn them, so I got in the car and headed for Urbak. Your General Hawk said you would catch up with me if I left when I did, that you had acquired a motorcycle." Vorona explained.

"His throat…" she said quietly, showing where the knife had slit it clean open.

Snake-Eyes could tell – practically feel – his heart weighing heavy. He reached down and took his dog tags off of the body.

RIPCORD

299-00-2319

CHRISTIAN

AB POSITIVE

Snake-Eyes reached down towards Ripcord with his hand, gently closing his eyelids over his empty blue eyes.

"He must have been sitting in the limo when he was killed. I didn't find his body until your Sierra Team left. I found his body hidden in some of the bushes by the mansion… dumped quickly but carelessly. But…" Vorona said, struggling how to phrase that last part, not because of her limited English skills but because of how crazy it was, what she was going to say. "But…I swear to you I am not insane and what I am about to tell you is the truth. I saw all four of them leave, in two separate vehicles. Jinx and Mayday in one, and in the other… Scarlett and Ripcord. Yes, Ripcord. I saw him. But that cannot be…"

If anyone could have seen underneath Snake-Eyes mask, they would have seen the blood drain away instantaneously and turning his face pale-white. Shana! For the first time since she had joined the team, Snake-Eyes felt… helpless. Utterly, completely helpless. Even more than when The Wraith had him pinned down in their sword duel. Even if The Wraith had struck him down, Snake-Eyes knew that he could have said he fought back as hard as he could have despite the outcome of the battle.

But this was different.

It was more than a helpless feeling; he was… he was something he hadn't been since his younger days during the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom. He was…

Scared.

Not for himself, of course, but for Scarlett. Shana, I told you not to join the team. All he could picture in his head were visions of the impostor cutting Shana's throat open, just like they did to Ripcord. The swirling darkness in his head grappled against his mind and his soul, and all he could see was an image of her dead, bleeding out on the floor.

Taking a deep breath, attempting to relax his muscles and focus on an inner calmness, he did the best he could to try and clear those images. To his astonishment, it wasn't working too well. It didn't completely clear his mind like it normally did. It was as if the residue of every horrific thing that the Cobra agent could do to Shana lingered somewhere in the back of his mind and just wouldn't go away, as if it were an invisible poison cutting deep within his veins.

Snake-Eyes quickly tucked Ripcord's dog tags in one of his pockets, while taking one last look at the fallen soldier, laying a hand upon his shoulder. I'm so sorry, William. I'd take you back with me if I could. Hopefully Vorona can have your body sent back to us, once this entire thing is over. But Scarlett… and the others… He raised his arm up, saluting Ripcord. But as his arm slowly lowered, he lamented the fact this would be the last time he'd ever see him.

Refocusing on the present moment, Snake-Eyes knew what he had to do. With a quick nod to Vorona, Snake-Eyes quickly got back on his motorcycle.

"I'm right behind you," Vorona told him, getting into her vehicle. "I might not be able to keep up with your motorcycle, but I'll get there, too. I'm not about to let those girls down. My mission can wait a short while if it must, but I know yours is in motion and on the brink of failure. Besides, your mission failure could have effects not just on your own country, but on mine as well. Disaster on a global level."

Snake-Eyes nodded and quickly sped off. Within moments, he was a speck in the horizon by the time Vorona so much as turned the key in the ignition. The infiltrator… he's riding with Shana. He's sitting right next to her, as an impostor, pretending to be Ripcord. Looking like Ripcord. I have to stop him… no matter what the cost. Intensity surged throughout the rider in black, determined to warn Scarlett and the others of the truth… warn them about the man that they thought was Ripcord.

Impostor. You'll pay for this.

I have to see her again… alive. I need to. I… Snake-Eyes, full speed on his motorcycle down the road once again, wasn't sure how he would react if he was fortunate enough to see her again, and alive. He had to see her alive again, and prayed silently that he would get that chance. He didn't pray as often as he should, and he knew that… but he prayed to God as hard as he could. He was desperate to see her, alive.

He knew he'd either throttle her for joining the team in the first place and getting herself carelessly thrown into such a dangerous situation…

Or he'd kiss her.

Maybe both.