"You..." Scarecrow hissed in a low voice as her eyes returned to Zeldri. "There's no artillery to save you. No t-dolls to rush to your aid." Scarecrow floated towards Zeldri and stopped a few feet away from him. She used her repulsers to float just above his eye level so he would have to look up at her. "Your last 'gambit' is to hide behind the empty shell of a nuke?" She gestured to the Heart that sat silently on the floor behind Zeldri.
"Empty shell?" Zeldri gently pushed himself off the computer cart and walked towards Scarecrow. "You make it sound like the Heart is just a big paperweight."
"Of course it is," Scarecrow retorted. Her drones flew down and tried to get in Zeldri's face, but he brushed them aside and stood a mere three feet from the Ringleader. "Your government wouldn't hand over an active nuclear weapon to a PMC. You can't bluff your way out of your death, this time, Griffin Commander."
"No, you're right in that Russia wouldn't hand over a nuke to just some PMC. But, for an intelligence and reconnaissance doll, you seem to be overlooking quite a few details."
"..." She had him surrounded and his base completely occupied. If he wanted his last words to be useless dribble, then so be it. "Tell me then, Griffin Commander, what is it that I've overlooked?"
"First, you seem to be ignoring who else is in the room with us." Zeldri glanced over his shoulder at K11. "Someone who I've had working on the Heart for quite a while, now."
"...A t-doll?" Scarecrow scoffed as she followed his gaze, "You expect me to believe that some t-doll can re-arm a hydrogen bomb?"
"She's not 'some t-doll', she's the perfect one for the job." Zeldri's eyes never faltered as he stared into Scarecrow's analyzing gaze. "Surely you have some kind of info on the t-dolls Griffin fields?" His taunting was getting annoying, so Scarecrow decided to link back to the Sangvis network and pull the file they had on the K11 t-doll variant. It seemed like the K11 was a lab junky doll and supposedly had a few things stored in their neural cloud; astronomy, anatomy, chemistry, mechanical engineering, physics (electromagnetism, quantum, nuclear)...
"...Not enough." Scarecrow decreased the power to her repulsers which caused her to hover down. She was now directly at eye level with Zeldri and the two matched the other's gaze. "Even on the off chance your K11 contains all the required knowledge to re-arm a nuke, you lack the required components to do so." Her eyes shifted to the Heart as she continued, "The AN602 is a hydrogen bomb, and I doubt anyone, even you lowly humans, would be stupid enough to leave depleted uranium lying around. Especially enough to re-arm an AN602."
"While you'd be surprised at that," Zeldri remarked in a not completely sarcastic manner, "This leads to the second thing you're overlooking; my staff."
"Your staff?"
"There's a man named Horris Strolcha on my base who has a knack for getting things he's really not supposed to. You should know since you've felt his influence first hand in the form of the artillery shell that defeated you, last time."
"...!" Scarecrow immediately connected to the Sangvis network and used all her processing power to dig through everything she could, public and classified, for info on Horris. What returned from digging through stolen files was an FSB list of suspected 90WISH members with Horris' name on it. She already knew of 90WISH which caused Scarecrow's eyes to narrow. If, and this was a really big if, K11 had all the knowledge necessary to do so and Horris provided the material needed... Scarecrow looked over to K11. T-dolls were known to be bad liars so she might gain something by studying K11's reactions. But, all she could make out was the genuine fear K11 had as she stared at Zeldri in horror. It was the kind of horror one experiences after they realize a terrible mistake they've made.
"And," Zeldri interrupted Scarecrow's thoughts and brought her focus back to him, "The final piece of information you're forgetting about is me."
"What are they doing?" Nagant said as she tapped Mondragon on the shoulder.
"Still just standing at the end of the hall; unmoving." Mondragon had her sniper rifle braced on a crate and covered by a tarp that she was peeking out from under. After having retreated from the main level, the checkpoint forces met up with the muster station forces of sub-level one to help in their defense. Mondragon watched the end of a long hallway where the Sangvis forces had stopped and the Guards had formed a shield wall. "They haven't moved since the Commander's last broadcast, so I assume they're waiting for Scarecrow's orders."
"Which means," Nagant said as she peeked around the corner at the Guards, "The Commander's still alive and negotiating with Scarecrow like the broadcast said?"
"It would seem so."
"To be forced to negotiate with Sangvis Ferri..." M2HB bemoaned, "It makes me want to start shredding them!"
"Don't!" Mondragon hissed at M2HB without taking her eye out of her scope.
"I know! I know. It's just... He's personally dealing with a Ringleader."
"It wouldn't be the first time," AA-12 finally spoke up from her spot sitting on the other side of the crate Mondragon was braced on. She and her dummy links sat in the hall in front of the barricade with their shields deployed to add more cover for the backline. She crunched down on her sucker. "He pulled a stunt like this last time and it worked out, so it'll be fine."
"You seem awfully sure," Mondragon remarked. "You almost sound unconcerned with what could happen to him."
"Because I am." AA-12's admission caused a stir from Mondragon and the rest of her team. "The Commander's pulled a victory out of impossible odds with stupid stunts before, so I'm inclined to believe in him. And, if I'm wrong..." Her shotgun sat in her lap fully loaded and ready to go. She spoke in a whisper as her words were more for herself than those around her, "Then I'll be sure he's avenged so it wouldn't be for nothing."
"How could I forget you?" Scarecrow hovered closer to Zeldri until they were only a foot apart. Her drones hovered threateningly close to his head.
"Then, what's my name?"
"Why should I care to remember your name? You're a lame, discharged soldier who now works for a PMC. You aren't special."
"And, that's why you lost, Scarecrow." Zeldri stood firm and wasn't showing any signs of fear. "I am Zeldri Vanya. I am the son of Artyom Vanya; a полковник (colonel) in the FSB. The only reason Griffin, or I have the Mountain as a base is because of my father's connections. Which should bring a question to your mind: why would the FSB give up such a large installation? An installation that has mostly functional military vehicles, equipment to bring the broken vehicles back online and keep a base like this running, and an AN602?"
"..." Things started clicking in Scarecrow's mind as she ran calculations and connected the new information she had. "You're the guard dog."
"The Mountain has been sitting for years to the point that anything inside could be written off as a 'logistics error' and lost. They just needed someone, once the time came, to finally go out and control it. But, they couldn't just send someone from the agency or military as that would bring on too much international suspicion. Which is why I'm the perfect asset." While Zeldri didn't like it or know if it was fully true, this was the most likely scenario of what was happening that he could think of. So, he leaned into it. "Retired soldiers are a dime-and-dozen in Russia. And, no one would mind if a PMC took over an old mothballed fort in their fight against an AI uprising. Griffin gets a secured front with the Mountain as a fortified staging ground, and Russia gets an off-the-record nuke handled by someone with familial ties to the FSB and is loyal to Russia. They've probably monitored every transmission that leaves this base. They check if the dog is still barking. And, if their guard dog starts barking about being infiltrated by Sangvis Ferri only to go silent right after then that only means one thing."
"...It means, I can't touch you." Scarecrow felt all her burning rage and anger smolder down into cold hate. She started thinking out loud as it was obvious to her now what Zeldri was doing. "If the AN602 is live then the outcomes are either you detonate the bomb here, or I kill you fast enough to gain control over it and the Mountain. In the first case, they claim that Sangvis Ferri has nuclear armaments and justify a military clean-up. And in the other, I still lose since the FSB would know I have control of the Mountain as I can only falsify your continued life for so long before they realize and focus the military onto us."
"Which," Zeldri continued for her, "I'm guessing would go against your 'Mastermind's' plan. It's why Sangvis sticks to the outskirts and is only slowly pushing into Russia. You're seeing how far you can get without fully provoking the bear."
"An astute observation." Scarecrow didn't like how clever Zeldri was being. "But," so she decided to do one more push, "That is only if the AN602 is armed. All this could just be a string of coincidences you're using to construct an elaborate bluff. Now that I know of him, your staff member, Horris, has experience with t-dolls that goes far beyond the norm. While your K11's reactions appear genuine, that could only be because you made them think they've done something horrible when all they've done is hit a wall. Horris may have many connections, but he could still not have one that gets you the depleted uranium, and other components needed. You may be the son of a high-ranking FSB member, but would the organization go that far for you?" Scarecrow leaned in close so that her face was an inch away from Zeldri's and she looked for the slightest hint of a tell.
"You're right," Zeldri admitted in a low voice, "But, can you take that risk?" His eyes never faltered. "You and I both know Sangvis only still exists because the military refuses to come down on you. Look down on humanity all you want, but the combined power of the entire Russian military dwarfs your own in both manpower and technology with what the KCCO has at their disposal. As a recon and intelligence doll, you know this. As a former soldier, I know this. And, your Mastermind sure as hell knows this. So, take your troops, and get the hell out of my base."
"..." Scarecrow continued to drill into Zeldri with her gaze for a while longer before giving her reply. "...All troops... Disengage and return to base."
"...!" Annika, after what felt like an eternity, felt her heart start to beat again as she watched the Vespids and Scouts exit the room. Scarecrow hovered after her troops before pausing to look back at Zeldri over her shoulder.
"You said your name was Zeldri, correct?"
"...Yes."
"I do not care to remember the names of humans unless they have earned my true anger or my respect." Her eyes watched Zeldri for a moment before continuing, "You have earned both. Until we meet again, Commander Zeldri of Griffin." And, with that, Scarecrow left.
"Huh?" Mondragon gave a surprised gasp.
"What?" Nagant peeked out from behind the wall.
"They're...pulling back?"
"..." AA-12 continued to silently suck on her new sucker as she watched the Guards at the end of the hall slowly pull back to the stairwell and leave. "As I said; he'd find a way."
"..." Zeldri stood stoically until Scarecrow and her troops had well and truly left. He watched them exit the Mountain through the security cameras he accessed from his tablet. Only when she was gone did he let out a sigh of relief and leaned heavily on his forearm crutch. He felt like he was going to puke.
.̷͎̬̓̐̀̑̉̑.̷̖̮̒̈̂͝.̶̪̓͒̓̈N̷̔̓͑͘ͅo̶͍̯͖̳͐̒͐́̓̕v̷̧͖͚͕̞̈́̂͝ͅe̸̞͚̾̅͠ṃ̷̡̠̟͖͉̓̎̊̈́͠ḅ̷̣̀e̷̻͖̬̼̤̽̉̓͝r̵͎̮̩͐̓̏́͝.̶̧͔̠̩̬̰̍̽͆́.̷̜͚̽͗̊̇.̷̣̼̫̱̟̍̃͛̑Z̶̧̨̧̳̬̞̓͊̅͆ě̶͕̯r̸̗̰̙͆͒̃̎̔ô̴̺͚̂̀̓.̵̢̡̗̘̽͌̕͝.̷̡̮͋̎̔̆.̷̪̞͌F̸̙̞̱͔̱͛͂͝͠ì̶̲̈́̽͠v̴̨͍͓̯͓͖̂͝ė̶̗͖̀͠.̴͔͕̞͉̇.̵̺̞̟̠͔̩͂̌̌͘.̸̖̻͔̣̻͈́̊͘Ǎ̴͈̙̰͐l̷̢̘͉͑̏͑̀͒p̷̤̞̞͍͎͍̀͊͆̇̎h̶̝̩̐͆͘a̵̧̾.̷̦̖̪̟̱̠̏͐̿̏.̷̯̥̻͠.̷̨̭͗͗͑̂͜
The Heart starting its repeating speech didn't help his growing migraine. "...Finally."
"...C-...Commander?" Zeldri turned around to see Annika still sitting on the floor. She was looking up at him with a mixture of confusion and fear. "Do... Did we win?"
"...Yes." Zeldri turned back towards the exit tunnel and took a deep breath. "We won."
.̴̳̈́̀̌̈.̸͈͚̰̲̦̀̊̅̒.̷̙͇͊Y̴͖̓a̵͇̘̕n̸̛̖̣͎͌̃͋̀k̶̨͔̬̀̋̋̚͘̚ẽ̵̛͚̟͇͉̬͉̽͋͐̚e̷̪͕͔̳͉̓̓͐.̵̬͔͔̃̀̓͛̇̽.̸͓̪̳̩̔́̽̕.̵̡͇̠̔̊̓͂̆͘A̴͇͓͈̱̘͒͌̎l̸̞͚̑̊̑͛̈́͘p̶̧͈̩̯̋h̶̘̻̮̊͋à̵͖̭̩͊̀͐͋.̷̗̙͉̦͇͛.̶̣̺͓̹̯͉̀͆̈́.̷͔͌Ẑ̶̨̘̟̪̘̲̄̊̈u̷̍́͐̀͜l̷̢̦̬͚̤̄͌̐̇̉͜ư̵̳͍͒̈̍.̷̡̭̥͓̮͌̕.̵̺̪̬͝.̵͇̯̱̄͌͊͒͆Ṫ̶̨̳͉̣̥͆͗h̴̫̙̭̗͐̏̔̋̊̈ṙ̷̫̩̤̲͐͜͝e̷̮̼̟̿͘ę̵̩̟̝̞̅͛̓̄.̷̧̳̟̹͗̌̅.̸͎̩͖̰̃̈́̽͒̑̊͜.̷̝͔͚͎͆̔̄͌̕͝
"So... No more Sangvis?"
"No, we will still be dealing with Sangvis Ferri."
"Huh?" Annika wasn't fully there as it was obvious her brain was still trying to catch up with what happened. "But... They can't get us because of-"
.̸̣̰͈̖̞̯̅͐͌͗.̴̝͓̜͓̱̈́̄̊͌̾͛.̴̧̛̞̬̮̽̃̋Ḿ̴̡̛̀̅͌ḯ̵̡̘͕̯̘̭̄̋̚͠k̸̘͗è̷̤͍̻̠͋͋͊̑̚.̵̗̬̆̋̓̌̍̋.̷̪͑͌ͅ.̵̘͈̪̜̀̕ͅO̵͎̲̦͔̩̊͗̅͘̕ṅ̶̬̓̽̋̀ë̴̢̝̤̪̜̏̅͝.̵͇̘̯̇̚̚.̶̡̪͎̗̓͜.̴̳̳͋̾Y̶̛̩̟̩̺͉͇̿͛a̴͚͈̥͍̓̈́͌͝n̴̲͗͛̈́͝k̵̨̝̝̥̘̜̋̆̍̎͘e̶̯̬̣̹͙̓e̷̹͐̒͌͊̅.̷̛͔͎̀̂̐̃̆.̸̨̛̲͌̈͒̽͘.̶͍͂̈́͂̈́͠͝A̷̦̜̺̳̩̟̅l̷̘̀̇͆̂̓̕͜ͅp̶̹̂ḧ̷̭̦̫̠̣͙ą̷͈̺͖͕̔̏̌̾͠.̶̢̖͈̅̔ͅ.̵̜̠͎̜͙̃̑͊̇͑̕.̵̖̄͗̋̌
"That only applies to the Mountain." Annika's confused expression made Zeldri explain further. "The Heart only works as a deterrent because so few know about it. We can't go around threatening Sangvis with it every time we meet them because then people will start to notice and questions start getting asked. If that happens, then the FSB will be forced to respond and we lose both the Heart as well as our lives, most likely."
"..." Annika could only continue to stare in horror as Zeldri started to walk towards the exit.
"The Mountain will be safe, but the rest of the sector is fair game in this war. K11," Zeldri remarked over his shoulder as he reached the door to the Heart's chamber, "Help Annika back to her room and bring her a warm drink to help her calm down."
"...Yes, Commander." K11 was also kind of out of it but started helping Annika up as Zeldri left sub-level five.
"..." Scarecrow stopped at the edge of a clearing to turn back towards the Mountain. Her forces continued to march back to base without her lead. Zeldri's logistics teams were just now reaching the Mountain and securing the perimeter, but her forces would be long gone before they could catch up. She continued to stare at the Mountain until the inevitable call reached her ears.
"Scarecrow, report." Agent's stern voice came over her comms.
"The sector...has been secured." She would have to lie. If it was found out that she failed once again against Zeldri to this degree she might get decommissioned. "I'm pulling my forces back for redeployment."
"I see." She had no idea if Agent truly bought her lie as Agent's tone was completely controlled and professional. "And, the asset?"
"Non-functional. It's just a useless heap of metal, so I'm leaving it in the Mountain."
"..." There was a pause that went on too long and started to make Scarecrow nervous. Her fingers slightly tensed, but she kept her cool.
"Agent?" She mustered up the courage to speak.
"Wait a moment, Scarecrow, I'm receiving new orders."
"...!" Agent receiving orders? Only one person could order Agent around. Her hands clenched as she continued to try and remain calm.
"Scarecrow?"
"Yes?" The moment of truth.
"Continue withdrawing your forces and prepare them for combat." A soft sigh escaped Scarecrow's lips and her hands relaxed. But, while she was relieved that she wasn't found out, these new orders were coming straight from Mastermind herself which could only mean one thing. "You will join Executioner and Hunter on the outskirts of Griffin's Sector 09 for a critical mission. Bring everything you have, Scarecrow. We've found the AR-team."
.̷͎̬̓̐̀̑̉̑.̷̖̮̒̈̂͝.̶̪̓͒̓̈N̷̔̓͑͘ͅo̶͍̯͖̳͐̒͐́̓̕v̷̧͖͚͕̞̈́̂͝ͅe̸̞͚̾̅͠ṃ̷̡̠̟͖͉̓̎̊̈́͠ḅ̷̣̀e̷̻͖̬̼̤̽̉̓͝r̵͎̮̩͐̓̏́͝.̶̧͔̠̩̬̰̍̽͆́.̷̜͚̽͗̊̇.̷̣̼̫̱̟̍̃͛̑Z̶̧̨̧̳̬̞̓͊̅͆ě̶͕̯r̸̗̰̙͆͒̃̎̔ô̴̺͚̂̀̓.̵̢̡̗̘̽͌̕͝.̷̡̮͋̎̔̆.̷̪̞͌F̸̙̞̱͔̱͛͂͝͠ì̶̲̈́̽͠v̴̨͍͓̯͓͖̂͝ė̶̗͖̀͠.̴͔͕̞͉̇.̵̺̞̟̠͔̩͂̌̌͘.̸̖̻͔̣̻͈́̊͘Ǎ̴͈̙̰͐l̷̢̘͉͑̏͑̀͒p̷̤̞̞͍͎͍̀͊͆̇̎h̶̝̩̐͆͘a̵̧̾.̷̦̖̪̟̱̠̏͐̿̏.̷̯̥̻͠.̷̨̭͗͗͑̂͜
Zeldri continued up the stairs from sub-level five. There was so much to do and clean up that it was making his head spin.
.̴̳̈́̀̌̈.̸͈͚̰̲̦̀̊̅̒.̷̙͇͊Y̴͖̓a̵͇̘̕n̸̛̖̣͎͌̃͋̀k̶̨͔̬̀̋̋̚͘̚ẽ̵̛͚̟͇͉̬͉̽͋͐̚e̷̪͕͔̳͉̓̓͐.̵̬͔͔̃̀̓͛̇̽.̸͓̪̳̩̔́̽̕.̵̡͇̠̔̊̓͂̆͘A̴͇͓͈̱̘͒͌̎l̸̞͚̑̊̑͛̈́͘p̶̧͈̩̯̋h̶̘̻̮̊͋à̵͖̭̩͊̀͐͋.̷̗̙͉̦͇͛.̶̣̺͓̹̯͉̀͆̈́.̷͔͌Ẑ̶̨̘̟̪̘̲̄̊̈u̷̍́͐̀͜l̷̢̦̬͚̤̄͌̐̇̉͜ư̵̳͍͒̈̍.̷̡̭̥͓̮͌̕.̵̺̪̬͝.̵͇̯̱̄͌͊͒͆Ṫ̶̨̳͉̣̥͆͗h̴̫̙̭̗͐̏̔̋̊̈ṙ̷̫̩̤̲͐͜͝e̷̮̼̟̿͘ę̵̩̟̝̞̅͛̓̄.̷̧̳̟̹͗̌̅.̸͎̩͖̰̃̈́̽͒̑̊͜.̷̝͔͚͎͆̔̄͌̕͝
He would need to do a headcount to know exactly who was lost during Scarecrow's raid. The a-dolls could be replaced during the next supply shipment, but the human staff...
.̸̣̰͈̖̞̯̅͐͌͗.̴̝͓̜͓̱̈́̄̊͌̾͛.̴̧̛̞̬̮̽̃̋Ḿ̴̡̛̀̅͌ḯ̵̡̘͕̯̘̭̄̋̚͠k̸̘͗è̷̤͍̻̠͋͋͊̑̚.̵̗̬̆̋̓̌̍̋.̷̪͑͌ͅ.̵̘͈̪̜̀̕ͅO̵͎̲̦͔̩̊͗̅͘̕ṅ̶̬̓̽̋̀ë̴̢̝̤̪̜̏̅͝.̵͇̘̯̇̚̚.̶̡̪͎̗̓͜.̴̳̳͋̾Y̶̛̩̟̩̺͉͇̿͛a̴͚͈̥͍̓̈́͌͝n̴̲͗͛̈́͝k̵̨̝̝̥̘̜̋̆̍̎͘e̶̯̬̣̹͙̓e̷̹͐̒͌͊̅.̷̛͔͎̀̂̐̃̆.̸̨̛̲͌̈͒̽͘.̶͍͂̈́͂̈́͠͝A̷̦̜̺̳̩̟̅l̷̘̀̇͆̂̓̕͜ͅp̶̹̂ḧ̷̭̦̫̠̣͙ą̷͈̺͖͕̔̏̌̾͠.̶̢̖͈̅̔ͅ.̵̜̠͎̜͙̃̑͊̇͑̕.̵̖̄͗̋̌
And, despite having left sub-level five, the Heart continued to assault his mind with its words. Zeldri's blood was starting to boil as he entered the hallway leading to sub-level four as he wanted to get SVD's team and Horris.
.̷͎̬̓̐̀̑̉̑.̷̖̮̒̈̂͝.̶̪̓͒̓̈N̷̔̓͑͘ͅo̶͍̯͖̳͐̒͐́̓̕v̷̧͖͚͕̞̈́̂͝ͅe̸̞͚̾̅͠ṃ̷̡̠̟͖͉̓̎̊̈́͠ḅ̷̣̀e̷̻͖̬̼̤̽̉̓͝r̵͎̮̩͐̓̏́͝.̶̧͔̠̩̬̰̍̽͆́.̷̜͚̽͗̊̇.̷̣̼̫̱̟̍̃͛̑Z̶̧̨̧̳̬̞̓͊̅͆ě̶͕̯r̸̗̰̙͆͒̃̎̔ô̴̺͚̂̀̓.̵̢̡̗̘̽͌̕͝.̷̡̮͋̎̔̆.̷̪̞͌F̸̙̞̱͔̱͛͂͝͠ì̶̲̈́̽͠v̴̨͍͓̯͓͖̂͝ė̶̗͖̀͠.̴͔͕̞͉̇.̵̺̞̟̠͔̩͂̌̌͘.̸̖̻͔
"Alpha! Yankee! Alpha! I get it! I know your code! Can you shut up for five seconds! Блядь (Fuck)!" He hit a breaking point and shouted at nothing. Zeldri threw his forearm crutch against the wall and gripped his head as he tried to calm down and think about what he needed to do next. This day was happening too fast for him to fully catch up with and the Heart's incessant droning was making it hard to think. "...Hm?" Seconds passed before Zeldri realized that the Heart had stopped making noise. As his hands stopped gripping his head and fell to his side, he realized that everything had stopped making noise. The fluorescent lights that lined the hall connecting the stairwell to sub-level four's tunnel were silent and had stopped flickering. Some were stopped mid-flicker. Zeldri moved to pick up his forearm crutch from the ground and found that there was no noise as he picked it up even though it scraped against the concrete floor a bit. There was some ambient dust floating in the air, but as Zeldri took a closer look he saw that the dust particles weren't moving, either. Everything froze and all sound stopped as if the world was processing what he had just said. "...W-?"
"C̶o̷m̵m̶a̷n̶d̷e̵r̴.̸.̷.̷" A voice broke the silence causing Zeldri to look up the hallway. Annika stood in the middle of the hall. Her head slightly hung down making her hair cast a shadow over her face, but Zeldri could still see her eyes. Her eyes that were usually full of life which now appeared vacant and dead as she stared at Zeldri.
"..." Zeldri didn't speak as the last time he tried to talk to her when this happened he-...wait... Last time? Something like this happened before? Zeldri's head started to hurt.
"C̶o̷m̵m̶a̷n̶d̷e̵r̴.̸.̷.̷" Annika repeated in a voice that sounded distant and was slightly distorted by radio static.
"...?" Now that Zeldri thought about it, he left Annika back on sub-level five, but she was in front of him leading to sub-level four. How did she-?
"W̵h̵y̷ ̷d̷i̸d̷ ̴y̸o̶u̷ ̴g̵o̷?̶"
"...?" Go? He left her on sub-level five to go start organizing the staff and dolls. But, something told him that wasn't what she meant. Still deciding not to talk, Zeldri took a step towards Annika.
"C̶o̷m̵m̶a̷n̶d̷e̵r̴.̸.̷.̷" A tear rolled down her cheek. As Zeldri took another step towards Annika, he stopped as a new sound broke through the silent world; boots running across a concrete floor. Just behind Annika, running down the hallway towards them, was a figure that Zeldri didn't recognize. That he couldn't recognize. The figure was running in a full sprint towards them, and Annika stepped aside to let them pass her. But, while Zeldri couldn't recognize the figure, he could easily recognize the ice axe the figure was wielding in their hand as they rushed towards him with killing intent.
"...!" Zeldri moved to draw his Makarov, but the figure was too fast and instantly closed the gap as they leapt at him. They raised the ice axe into the air and brought it down hard on Zeldri's skull.
...
...
...
"And, you're awfully full of yourself." Zeldri heard the black-cloaked woman speaking, and opened his eyes. He was in the world of white and lying face down on his stomach. The back of his head was throbbing. "You have to admit, seeing Scarecrow like that was hilarious!" As he moved to get up, he saw the black-cloaked woman a few feet away from him, but she wasn't facing him as she spoke. Her words were also weird, it was as if she was talking to someone el-
"You aren't here to amuse yourself."
"...!" A new voice filled the white world yet the only people there were Zeldri and the black-cloaked woman. It also sounded distinctly male but wasn't the Heart's voice.
"Getting nervous?" the black-cloaked woman teased.
"Nervous about you wasting my time, yes," the male voice answered. As Zeldri got to his feet something inside him stirred. While he never felt like speaking to the black-cloaked woman it was because he found such a thing a waste of time, for some reason. He also didn't mind when she spoke. But, this new voice? The more the male voice spoke the more Zeldri wanted to s̷̨̄t̷̗̉ȓ̶̲a̵͇͆n̸̡͗ğ̴̙ļ̸̎e̵͕͒ ̷̡̊h̸̙̀ì̴̟m̵̧̈!̸̘͒
"...Hm?" The black-cloaked woman suddenly refocused as something caught her attention. There was a tremor in the white world. "What was...?" She turned around and noticed Zeldri for the first time. "Commander!?" She seemed surprised he was there. "What are you-WAH!" The black-cloaked woman reacted just in time and dodged forwards as a bullet whizzed past her. She and Zeldri turned towards where the bullet came from to see five figures rushing towards them in the distance all with weapons drawn and aimed at them.
"What is i-?"
"Shut up!" The black-cloaked woman grit her teeth in annoyance. "Alright, fine! You wanna play it this way?!" She spat at the approaching figures before turning towards Zeldri. "Sorry about this, Commander, but..." She instantly closed the gap between them and placed her hand on Zeldri's head. Using her right leg, she swept Zeldri's feet out from under him and used her hand to bring him down. "Take a rest, Commander, you look tired."
"...!" Zeldri expected to hit solid ground since he had been lying there earlier, but instead found himself going through the floor as if it was water. The black-cloaked woman's hand left Zeldri's head and she stood back up to face the approaching figures. As he sank lower and lower into the dark water, Zeldri could catch glimpses of lightning bolts arcing around him that would occasionally light up the darkness. He was surrounded by a dark, endless ocean. The current that pulled him down was also making him tired and he was finding it hard to stay awake. The lightning around him also started to die down which let the dark creep in and lull him further. The surface distorted the white world above him, but he could make out the black-cloaked woman as she was now fighting the five figures. Muffled cracks of gunfire quietly drifted down to him through the water as the five figures fired their weapons and bullet casings started to rain down and drift into the deep along with him. Before Zeldri's mind slipped into unconsciousness, one bullet casing drifted past his face that he recognized from his service days. It was a 5.45 Russian.
