CHAPTER 4
Hey guys. Been awhile. Got a really good chapter I think, although maybe not. All that matters is if you are happy. I enjoyed writing it. Let me know if it jumps around a bit to much or is hard to follow at times. It's my first real attempt at having multiple things going on at once. Hopefully my first try here doesn't hurt the story to much. Really hope you guys enjoy! Reviews are always appreciated, no matter what you say, good or bad, we all want the story to be good.
Rogue strutted down the halls of the G.U.N headquarters after giving a report to her and Shadow's commanding officer. The report detailed their current investigation into the recent portal phenomena and tracking down whatever could have possibly come through it. It was complete bogus, but the CO believed it and let her go without further questioning. Now she prowled the halls heading toward the research and development section of the base.
Shadow was off at Eggman's hideout playing his part in their "investigation" so anyone that G.U.N had watching them wouldn't see through their ruse. Rogue's current objective was to make her way into the research and development area and try to find any information about the portal, communications to or from Zulu's dimension, and or the combat drugs G.U.N was developing. She turned a corner and noticed the R&D door ahead of her flanked by two guards. As she approached them she quickly thought of an excuse to get by them.
"Hello boys." She greeted them with a wink, adding an arousing tone to her voice. She watched them closely for how they would react.
"State your business." The guard to her right demanded. She saw some fatigue in his eyes and smiled to herself. She also noticed the other guard trying his best to ignore her entirely.
"Come on guys, you know I like a responsible man in uniform." She purred at them. "But it's late, and I also appreciate a man who can let loose a little at night." She added a small pout at the end, slowly looking them both up and down with her eyes. She caught a slight bead of sweat run down the guard on her left's forehead. The one on her right, however, sighed with irritation and she changed her strategy.
"You must have official business to come in here, agent or otherwise. We have not gotten word that you were to be admitted into this section tonight, thus, you need to leave." The right guard stated firmly, narrowing his eyes at her. Rogue rolled her eyes and unleashed her plan, overwhelming, indomitable sass.
"Well then, if you just have to know a lady's business, my jumpsuit has really started chaffing me recently." She slid her hands over her breasts and down her sides, puffing out her chest and pivoting sideways as she showed them exactly where her suit was uncomfortable. "Look how tight it is! I can't work in this! I'm a maturing woman who needs my jumpsuit just right around the chest!" The guard cut her off, his will crushed and fatigue weighed heavily on him, he didn't want to deal with her anymore.
"Ok! Ok! You can pass!" He motioned her by and sighed as the door closed behind her. "Jesus Christ, what a bitch." He muttered. The other guard nodded in agreement.
Rogue, satisfied with herself, continued on down the hall that started branching out to various labs in the facility. She peeked into various rooms as she went, looking for anything that looked like a portal or a chemical lab for the drugs. Rogue stopped in front of a door weirdly labeled "Stimulation Lab". She chuckled to herself as her mind went to some sexual place before she regained her focus and slid inside the room, shutting the door behind her with a ghost of a whisper.
Rogue scanned the room for security cameras as well as other G.U.N personnel, noting where the cameras were and where they were pointing, and determining she was alone. She slowly stepped up to a big stainless steel table littered with various stands holding glass vials and beakers with a rainbow of different colored liquids inside them. There were five other similar tables in the room, three of which had more vials and beakers atop them and the two remaining had computers and equipment she couldn't identify. She crept around the room following the very thin blind area the cameras didn't cover and made it to a computer desk undetected.
She powered it on and, using her training, hacked into the computer files using an untraceable skeleton key of sorts used by G.U.N spies with her own unique style so it wouldn't be easily recognized. She systematically began going through each file, looking for any key words she had mentally made. Finally, in her ninth file, she spotted one of her keywords, "combat". The following information she read in the file was an entire catalog of hypotheses, tests, developments, observations, subject tests, noted symptoms, and varying results of a program the file called "Puppeteer". Rogue began to feel sick as she read through the tests that were done and symptoms the test subjects developed and wanted to leave the room immediately.
Suddenly, outside the lab, Rogue heard an echo of footsteps coming down one of the halls toward the lab. She quickly printed out all the information and gave the papers a final look before tucking them into her jumpsuit.
"This is so wrong." She muttered to herself as she made her way out of the room and began heading back toward the two guards from earlier, forgetting about finding the portal and wanting nothing more than to leave as the once plain and boring walls took on a more sadistic feel, daring her to find out what other atrocities were committed behind the scenes. She was a few strides down the hall when the patrolling guard she had heard from inside the lab rounded the corner behind her and called for her to stop and explain what she was doing there. Rogue, feeling sick and uncomfortable, gave him a quick excuse about getting a new better fitting uniform and said she was leaving. The guard let her go and Rogue left the building without further incident.
"Hey Shadow, its Rogue. Just left G.U.N, you won't believe what they have been doing."
"Just finished with Eggman. Let's rendezvous at Tails' place."
"Oh, and Shadow, I-I'm sorry."
"What?"
Rogue didn't reply, for she was overcome with emotion and she didn't want him to hear her cry as she thought about what types of horrible things G.U.N might have done to Shadow in secret.
"Dammit!" Commander Jarving shouted as he slammed his fist down on his desk. It had been a long day of watching the news coverage of the explosion and re-watching the surveillance videos of the raid that occurred the previous evening at his research lab. Reporters had come to the IA complex to ask about any possible involvement, to which Jarving replied he was leading a full investigation into the explosion, but avoided answering any questions about IA being connected to it.
His advisors and fellow research members flinched as his fist hit the table.
"It was a massive explosion! Do any of you have anything useful to share?" He demanded, glaring at his other advisors, ignoring the man in front of him who had found out nothing about what happened. One of his advisors stepped forward clutching a folder. She adjusted her glasses and handed it to him as she began to report her findings.
"Sir, although it is quite a setback that information has been hard to find regarding what happened to the team, we can view this as a positive. Whoever is responsible is also wanting to cover it up and has cleaned up quite a mess. However, I tracked down an eye-witness, and his account of last night is in the file."
Jarving raised his eyebrows at her and opened the file.
"That all sounds well and good but this says that the man is homeless." He glanced up at her questioningly.
"Sir, he was interrogated by me personally, I can verify what he said, just read."
Jarving gave her a small nod and read through the file.
"Hmm, I see, so he has been living in the old underground areas. He heard the explosion and thought it was an earthquake. He fled up to the street and hid in a dumpster. He heard car engines a while later and peeked out to see a bunch of armed men emerging from a couple trucks and hurrying into the rubble of the building. They started bringing bodies out of the rubble….." He trailed off, his eyes growing more intense. "Two groups of body bags…" "Twenty or so loaded into one truck…" "Five into the other…" "The five that were separated seemed bigger than normal…" Jarving stopped and stood up, staring the woman dead in the eyes.
"He only counted five?" He said, narrowing his eyes.
"Yes sir, we asked multiple times and had him retell his story a few times, he was consistent. He only saw five."
"Alright everyone listen up! I want this city turned upside down. As you all know Zulu's team had seven men, so let's find out which two are MIA!" Jarving felt relieved some of his boys made it out alive. He dispatched everyone to begin the search and sat back down in his chair, frustrated he couldn't join the search since whoever wanted him dead was still out there. So going out into the city was not a smart option. Elsewhere, a similar investigation was just getting underway.
"So, the few men who survived the explosion confirmed all seven of those freaks were hit?" A dark, gruff voice growled.
"Yes sir." Erik Murphey replied. Murphey had been assigned to lead the elimination mission of Project W.E.A.P.O.N. Unfortunately, it all had gone south and now he had to deal with his boss. He cringed and moved the phone away from his ear as the phone erupted.
"Then would you mind telling me where Hell the other two are!?"
"Sir I-"
"Sir!" One of his officers rushed in and interrupted. "Local hospital had a break in last night after the explosion! We investigated and we believe it was one of those two men!" Erik nodded.
"Sir, we just found a lead at a local hospital, I'll get back to you with positive results."
"You better! Raeger out." The line went dead and Erik hurried after the officer, excited for a man hunt.
Overnight Shadow and Rogue had met with Tails and Zulu and discussed Rogue's findings. Zulu confirmed he had been put through a lot of the tests listed, but was unaware of any symptoms or side-effects.
"Well it looks like most of the symptoms are triggered by stress." Tails observed. "I'd say it would be preferable for you to avoid intense combat or your mind might relapse into a state similar to how it was when you were under the drugs influence."
"Which would be dangerous for everyone around me." Zulu nodded in agreement. "In training our minds and bodies were put through immense stress and pain and prodded, so to speak, to react with extreme aggression and prejudice. If we were going out we were going to take everyone with us. The more injuries we sustained the harder we would fight."
"And you were the leader of the team, so you must be quite a force to be reckoned with when under stress." Shadow added.
"I guess." Zulu said solemnly. "In my opinion though I don't think I was the most dangerous. We were a team, we all had our strengths and weaknesses just as you and your friends do. I became the leader mainly due to my long fuse. I could hold myself together the longest in training before "becoming weaponized" as Jarving called it. That way, as my team slowly succumbed to the stress of combat and got more violent and aggressive, I would become the mind of the group, and would guide them to where they would be most effective like my own body. However, if my teammates fell, you could say I was the most dangerous then." Zulu paused, thinking hard. "That said." He continued. "There was one man on our team I was genuinely afraid of."
"Really?" Tails asked, finding it hard to believe this giant man could feel fear.
"Who?" Shadow asked, intrigued. Zulu didn't answer, lost in thought as he remembered the cross-hair like eyes of his ex-teammate. Shadow and the others shared a look and waited.
"It doesn't really matter now." Zulu finally spoke. "I am going to get some shut-eye." He silently left the room and went to bed.
"Think he's ok?" Rogue asked, looking concerned.
"It's probably the first time he's ever told anyone that." Shadow said. "He might feel guilty and disrespectful feeling that way about a dead brother in arms."
"Well as long as we give him his space, I think he will be alright." Tails said to Rogue. "There is a lot we don't know and all we can do is show we genuinely care." He finished, yawned, and departed as well, wishing Rogue and Shadow goodnight.
"Guess we can sack out here for the night." Shadow said, finding a comfortable place on the couch and shutting his eyes. Rogue went and lied down on the opposite side of the couch, gently reaching down with a wing to cover Shadow before falling asleep as well.
At 10:17am the next morning Jarving was in his office waiting for any reports from his advisors on any further leads about his two missing boys. Earlier that morning he had gotten a call about a break in at a hospital that might be related. So far he had heard nothing more. His phone began to ring and he eagerly answered it.
"This is Jarving, any new leads?"
"Sir, another break in, this time a local gun store. Clerk called the police half an hour ago to report that when he arrived to work he found his shop had been broken into. Someone had seemingly ripped the back door off its hinges and stolen some guns."
"What guns were stolen?"
"Sir?"
"Look, each member of the team had their preference of combat and how they did things, what guns were stolen?" He asked more urgently.
"I'll find out and get back to you sir." His advisor hung up and Jarving drummed his fingers impatiently on the table. Ten minutes later the phone rang.
"So?" He answered.
"A Barret M82A1 was stolen from the owner's personal collection in his shop office, along with a Desert Eagle chambered in .50 caliber, two Sig Sauer P220s, three knives, and a lot of ammo." Jarving gulped.
"Alright, get back to the complex, and tell everyone else to get back here too, ASAP." He hung up, dreading what this meant. An hour later everyone gathered in Jarving's meeting room and waited for him to start.
"Alright, I'm sure you all know of the gun store break in, and are aware of what was taken?"
"Yes sir!" They all replied.
"Well, I called you all back because it's no longer safe. The teams last orders came from me, so as far as we know, the two who lived most likely think we set them up and tried to eliminate them. With this new evidence I can say that for sure, the weapons taken match only one of the teams profile, and he is sure to be gunning for us, and anyone else trying to track him. If we stop, he will have to come to us, and whoever else is trying to find him, they will be digging their own grave."
"Who is it? And can we be sure that calling off the search is the right decision?" One of his advisors asked.
"Yes it's the right decision. You don't know the team very well but the researchers here know each member of Zulu's team, and the man in question is probably the most dangerous on his own, since he was the Lone Wolf of the group. Our enemy will buy us time while we figure out what to do when he inevitably turns his sights on us. Looks like Victor has begun his hunt."
"So their sniper made it out alive?" Erik asked, looking at the report of the gun shop break in.
"Yes sir, that's my guess."
"That narrows our search area. Send out teams to any places a sniper would hide. We will flush him out and take him down. Any news on the other one that made it out?"
"No sir, either they are together, or the other one is deep in hiding."
"No matter, we have controlled the cover up well enough, time is not an issue as to when we finish cleaning up the mess, so we can track them down one at a time." Erik said, feeling confident his men would find this loose dog and put him down.
Five ten-man teams were dispatched at noon around Seattle to various areas where a sniper would likely hide out. One team covered the area around the Space Needle, while a second team went to where the Safeco and "Clink" stadiums were. The "Clink" was a locally given nickname to the Seahawks stadium, a mash up of Century Link. The third team investigated various construction areas around the city, checking out the massive cranes that overlooked everything around them. A fourth team was sent to the industrial and commercial shipping docks, searching the big ships in secret for any clues of someone hiding out on board. The last team sent out was a patrol, and had orders to drive around 24/7, covering the quiet neighborhoods and less populated areas of the city, as well as being a mobile support to any of the other four teams, should they call for assistance.
At 10:00pm the teams began their check in with Erik via conference call. He eagerly awaited any findings they had made, but assumed there had been nothing groundbreaking or they would have contacted him ASAP.
"This is Team 1, no one has seen anyone suspicious around the Space Needle or the outlying parks."
"Team 2 reporting, nothing at the sports stadiums or train area nearby."
"This is Team 3, not much to report besides some missing construction tools at a site by the water. Just some wrenches, a heavy duty socket wrench, and some welding equipment, doesn't seem like our target."
"Hmm, we will keep note of it." Erik replied. "Alright teams 4 and 5, what have you got?" There was a long pause. "Teams 4 and 5, report!" He repeated, a sick feeling sinking into his stomach.
"Uh…This is team 5 I guess." Started a confused sounding field operative. "We found nothing on our patrol and no one we asked had seen anyone unusual."
"Alright. Team 4?" Erik demanded. "Team 4 report in! That's an order!"
There was no reply.
