My short reprieve in the respawn room broke when Soldier appeared next to me a few seconds later, shouting a manner of things to no-one in particular.

Some examples. Ahem.

"I'm going to gut that Spy like a snail from its shell!" (This was a clever one.)

"Women belong in the kitchen!" (Nevermind.)

"Down with the Frenchies!"

"I'll shove the Ay-fol Tower up his ass!" (Aww, that was a good try.)

"Murder is a man's job."

"Women can't aim." (I decided to not point out the obvious.)

And etcetera.

Those were just my favourites. Heavy had appeared half-way through his tirade, with Spy not close behind as the Administrators voice boomed that we failed. Funnily enough, Heavy just snuck out the room without so much as a glance. Spy watched with a bemused manner, not appearing to care about the failure. He would occasionally wince at any negative comments against his homeland, but was otherwise calm. This was until Solly got so fed up with my complacency that he started whacking me with his E.T. Spy jumped in quickly to resolve that problem, since I was getting my ass handed to me by a hysterical man wielding a small green metal shovel.

After he had been thrown out respawn, I left with Spy to go to the infirmary. Or more, I was dragged.

'Spook, I have two feet, I can walk myself to the Medic.'

'That much is obvious, Sniper. I want to ask a few questions.'

'I'm not here to be interrogated.'

'Of course, though surely you wouldn't mind answering a few questions for me?'

I pulled myself out of his grip, reaching up to rub the spot where the E.T. had connected with my temple. I stared at him, anger in my eyes.

'I don't think you caught my drift. What I meant to say was piss off.'

He stared back at me, frowning. Demoman attempted to wander through in the search of his precious Scrumpy, but the tension in the air was thick enough that he had to make a hasty retreat.

I closed my eyes as the headache took hold, sighing. 'I'm out.' The infirmary was my next stop, and Spy be damned if he tried to stop me.

/

Paper slapped down in front of me. A thick sheaf, held together by multiple paper clips in some form of sections. A pen dropped down on top of the documents.

A rough voice spoke. Bony fingers tapped the desk. 'My dear, this is the final stage of your induction. These papers are your contract.' I moved the pen off, playing with it as I flicked through the tome. This was much larger than any other contract I'd had in the past. 'Inside are the terms of your employment, the code of conduct you must follow and the relevant liability forms. All must be signed to join with us.'

I had applied for the position despite it being listed in the men's classifieds. Imagine my surprise when I manage to get into an interview with the head of the organisation, only to find out that she and her assistant are also women. The Administrators bony fingers tapped impatiently.

'The papers are identical to those of your male counterparts. Though as a woman myself, I must warn you; you will be the only female on that battlefield. Signing these documents removes all liability from Builders League United should you suffer attacks based on your gender, as well as any and all other form of attack. These include physical, psychological and emotional.' The Administrator halted her fingers incessant drumming. 'Do you agree to these conditions?'

The pen felt heavy in my hand as I signed the first line. 'I agree.'

/

'That will be quite the bruise, Fräulein.' Medic's probing figures were removed from my head. He moved swiftly to his medicine cabinet, procuring a small container. 'These tablets should help the headache.'

I gave my thanks as he gave me the container. I turned it over in my hands, reading the label for instructions. Two with food. Just as well dinner was coming up.

'I hear the rest of the team knows about the secret now.' I looked up at Medic. His usual psychotic demeanour was gone. He looked at me with what appeared to be concern. I wasn't ever sure of his emotions.

I turned my attention to the bottle again, putting it in my pocket. 'It was bound to come out some time.'

Silence.

Eventually, the German accent broke the quiet. 'If it means anything to you, I do not think it will matter to many in the team. In fact, I don't think it should change anything at all.'

I smiled. 'With you on that one, Doc.'

With another thanks, I left the infirmary. It wasn't long before I heard the whisper of disturbed air for the second time that day. I stopped.

'What do you want, Spook?'

He materialised next to me, facing forward as if he were walking with me. 'To talk.'

I growled and continued walking. 'Surprise, surprise.'

'Sniper, I'm trying to help you. The repercussions this could now have on our tactics, our strategy-'

I'd had enough. My hand shot out and grasped his throat, backing him up against the wall. He hadn't expected me to react so violently.

'I dunno what's going through that head of yours, Spook, but if you think for a second today's events have changed anything you're dead wrong.' I pushed back, letting him go. 'I'm a professional, just like the rest of you lot. Me having tits doesn't suddenly mean I'm fucking helpless. Now PISS. OFF.'

I headed off to the nearest external door, looking forward to spending the evening in my van. Dinner wasn't going to cook itself and my headache was only getting worse. I just prayed that the vans heater was going to work the whole night.