Now that tensions have cooled down and common ground has been found, Task Force 141 follows Laswell's lead while gearing up.

Soap: What did you get from your international partners?

Ghost: Did the intel package come from the good Russians or the bad Russians?

Laswell: The F.S.B.'s good people, boys. They won't shoot us on sight. And they're OUR international partners. We found Makarov's very own Helen Lennox. She's an active oligarch despite being a disgraced F.S.B. Agent named Senior Lieutenant Milena Romanova, callsign: Athena. The Inner Circle's head of finance and best logistics specialist. Been running their money and movements from behind the scenes for years.

Grinch: Looks fancy for a government agent. Where is she?

Laswell: Her residence, which is on a private island.

Truck: Isolated and remote.

Laswell: It's a fortress in paradise. Guess who runs security.

Sandman: The Ultranationalist Inner Circle themselves. Fuck how many. We can take this.

Laswell: The intel included blueprints and the lay o' the land.

Soap: What are we looking for? We can't roll up Athena.

Laswell: Not legally. But we can roll up her money. Island's got servers that can get us into her banking.

Ghost: The servers will have security protocols of their own. We need to get past them.

Laswell: Someone out there has an executive key. We find him, I can get a live line and crack it.

Soap: We'll infil from the water and split up. I'll take Ridley and Grinch and lock the perimeter down. Ghost, Red Coat, Sandman, Truck, go for the executive key.

Ghost: Understood, sir. We'll need eyes.

Laswell: I'll pilot a drone and coordinate from the air.

Ghost: I like what I'm hearin'.

Soap: Plan sound good, team? Any questions? Comments?

Sandman: Couldn't have made a better one myself, Soap. Price was right to choose you.

Red Coat: *yawns* Ten quid says we're breaking international law the moment we get our hands on Athena.

Laswell: Is there another problem here, boys?

Ridley: *yawns* No, not at all, Watcher. Unless you count boredom. First day in the "best of the best" for Red Coat and I, and we're already in for a boring op.

Soap: Maybe, maybe not. Let's go follow the money.

18:58:30, Mediterranean Sea, a relatively short flight, a wet air drop, and a shorter boat ride later, Hotel Team, Metal Team, Ridley and Red Coat reach their insertion point just a hundred yards away from Romanov Island. The first in the water is Ghost's element.

Ghost: Weapons hot, Johnny. Storm's coming.

Red Coat: Shame we couldn't wait for an actual storm to come over.

Laswell: Gimme a SITREP, boys.

Soap: On target, Watcher. 'Bout to split up.

Laswell: I got eyes in the sky. Let's go to work, 141.

[Red Coat, Ghost, Sandman and Truck disembark]

Laswell: Primary objective is the executive key. I'll let you know who has it in a moment. Ghost, with the server room on your side of the island, our possible H.V.T. might be there. Get in and standby.

Ghost: If he's there, it'll be his unlucky day.

Red Coat: Welcome to my world's idea of wetwork, gents. Come, I'll give you the tour.

Truck: Don't forget who's the CO now, Turncoat.

[Sandman chuckles]

--

The Bank And Beating Heart Of The Party

1st October, 2026 - 19:00:27

Lt. Simon 'Ghost' Riley

Task Force 141

Romanov Island, Mediterranean Sea

--

After securing the beach and upon getting started on the Inner Circle security team's four cabanas, Watcher reveals the holder of the executive key: Lieutenant Nestor Gustev (just "Nestor Gustev" in the original), the head of Milena's personal protection detail. Just as Task Force 141 goes internal and sabotages a possible emergency escape route.

Red Coat: Four cabanas up ahead. The exec key holder could be inside or near 'em.

Truck: All these small, luxurious rooms. What are they called again?

Laswell: I believe those are called cabanas, Metal 0-2.

Truck: Ah. Thanks, mom.

[Laswell chuckles]

Sandman: Island's crawling with Inner Circle.

Red Coat: Yeah. This is their living quarters.

Ghost: Burn through 'em, Warren.

Sandman: With fucking pleasure, sir.

[HK 433 fire]

[HK416 A5 fire]

[G28 fire]

[HK416 A5 fire]

Ghost: First cabana, clear. Team, SITREP.

Red Coat: Second cabana is secure. Everyone's empty-handed. No executive key.

Ghost: Third and fourth cabanas, then. Let's move on.

Laswell: Get to 'em, Ghost. Just did some digging. H.V.T.'s name is Lieutenant Nestor Gustev. He's in charge of Milena's personal security.

Ghost: Lovely. Tell his family he won't be home for dinner.

Soap: Watcher, we found some well-maintained vehicles all over Romanov Island's perimeter.

Laswell: How many?

Soap: Up west, there's a cove with four inflatable speed boats. Up east, another set is sitting in a beach. Minimal guards each. Could be escape routes in the event of an attack.

Laswell: We can't risk an emergency evac. Take 'em out.

[M39 EMR fire]

Grinch: Roger that. Rich bitch won't be going anywhere.

[C8 SFW fire]

Ridley: Keep your scope on those evac teams, Grinch, not the bulletproof glass protecting Athena.

Grinch: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[MK14 EBR fire]

Ghost, Red Coat, Sandman and Truck then find and kill Lieutenant Nestor Gustev as he sits by the fountain in the middle of the Inner Circle's living quarters area, raid their armory, and give Laswell control over Romanov Island's server room. Once Hotel 7's element's first job is done, Soap's team completes theirs and devises the next move.

[S.A.S. Dagger hit]

[G28 fire]

[HK416 A5 fire]

Red Coat: Got you covered, Ghost.

Ghost: Leftenant Gustev's gone. *grabs executive key* And I have the exec key.

Laswell: Good work, Hotel 7. The only way to access Milena's banking is through Romanov Island's server room. And the only way to open that is to control the armory. It has a key card scanner that'll unlock the door.

Sandman: Truck and I see it and are making entry. *opens door*

[HK416 A5 fire]

Sandman: Clear. Come on in, sir.

Red Coat: I'm clearing the last two cabanas. Last thing we want is to get tailed and jumped.

[G28 fire]

Ghost: *swipes executive key in* Server room's opening. More guards coming out of it.

[HK SL8 fire]

[S.A.S. Dagger hit]

[P226 MK25 fire]

Ghost: Server room, clear.

Truck: Gotta love the Ghost. Nicely played, sir.

Ghost: *swipes executive key in* *uses terminal* Watcher, giving you the server room now.

Laswell: I have control. Great work, Ghost. I see multiple accounts, banks, routing numbers. It's a start, but they're all locked under password authentication. Be advised, SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) shows multiple calls from the main house.

Soap: Athena must be inside.

Ridley: Spooked as well. She must know what goes on in the server room.

Laswell: We need two of her passwords. She's got a personal computer and a laptop.

Soap: Rog'. Ghost, Red Coat, Sandman, Truck, rally at the mansion. Let's ask Athena some questions.

Ghost: (on comms) Check. On it. (off comms) The mansion, gents.

Red Coat: Coming back to you.

Sandman: Surprise. I thought you'd be killed since CQB isn't really your specialty.

Red Coat: My fuck, you, Truck and Grinch are BORING and ANNOYING!

Sandman: People in glass houses, Turncoat. And we're some of Captain Price's most trusted Americans. We can afford to be annoying.

Ghost: Team, enough. We're getting close to the target building.

Truck: Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.

Red Coat: Copy, Ghost. I'm cleaning up the garage.

Truck: That's "sir" to you, Turncoat.

With her banking network hijacked, Athena tries to get a hold of Nestor and immediately alerts the whole isle the moment she sees her head of security dead in the fountain. But her efforts to keep herself safe will be all for nothing because Task Force 141 is about to lock her mansion down and kick her office/bedroom door in.

Laswell: 141, Milena's making calls from her office/bedroom. I intercepted the signal. It's worth a listen. Standby.

Milena: (Russian) Who is accessing the server room?! Where the hell are— Nestor, NO! Get me the entire island now! We are under attack!

[alarm blares]

Grinch: What did she just say, Watcher?

Red Coat: She found Nestor and placed Romanov Island on full alert. Intercepting incoming reinforcements now.

[M249 Para fire]

Soap: Gustev is no longer available, lass.

Laswell: Be advised, she's trying and failing to regain access to her network. Take her alive. We can still weaponize her love for her money. She won't beat me in the system. And stay sharp down there, boys. Inner Circle will protect Milena to the death.

Ghost: Death it is. Let's do this.

Red Coat: Check fire, Hotel 6! I'm in the garage.

Soap: Copy, I see you. Bloody Hell.

Ghost: What are you on about, Johnny.

Soap: It's like a frickin' car museum in the garage.

Ghost: Mm, marry yourself an oligarch with an island, and this too shall be yours.

Laswell: Milena won't be in the mood to marry when we're done with her.

Grinch: I like the collection, but why the hell is there a car garage here? There are no roads around, and there are certainly no bridges or tunnels to a mainland.

Ridley: Well, she is a billionaire. She can do whatever she wants.

Soap: Heh. No need to wait for us, Ghost. The whole mansion's all yours if you want.

Ghost: Roger. Making entry. Where's Athena? *opens door*

[HK 433 fire]

Sandman: Same. *opens door*

[HK416 A5 fire]

Truck: Likewise. *opens door*

[HK416 A5 fire]

Laswell: Still in her office/bedroom. Top floor. Main target building's filled with some of the Inner Circle's best fighters and killers. They're no pushovers, and they won't stop.

Ghost: They'll stop when they're dead.

Laswell: Good point. Ghost, Sandman, Truck, you know what to do.

Sandman: Sweep and clear, Watcher. Our specialties.

Truck: You watching and learning, Turncoat?

Red Coat: Bite me.

[PKP Pecheneg fire]

[Saiga-12 fire]

[AK-105 fire]

[PP-19 Vityaz fire]

[S.A.S. Dagger hit]

Ghost: A challenge! Good!

[MT-575 Knife hit]

[Lightweight Desert Eagle fire]

Sandman: First floor, clear! Move!

[Five-seveN USG fire]

Truck: Second floor, clear! Keep moving!

[HK 433 fire]

[bullets ricochet]

[bullets hit]

[bullets penetrate]

[HK 433 clicks]

[HK SL8 fire]

Ghost: Third floor, clear. Dumb bastards forgot to check the walls they shot through. Is this really the best the Inner Circle has to offer?

Soap: Things have gone quiet, Watcher. What's up?

Laswell: You did it, 141. AO is clear. Milena's all alone now.

Soap: Roger that. Coming in.

Ghost: Holding for you.

5 minutes of fighting and killing and nearly a hundred K.I.A. Inner Circle Operators later, Hotel Team, Metal Team, Ridley and Red Coat introduce themselves to Milena and get to work. But even having a bunch of different cards to play will not prepare them for what the Inner Circle's best logistics specialist and head of finance has to say next.

Soap: *kicks door open* British Special Forces! Show your hands!

Sandman: Clear right!

Ghost: Clear left!

Ridley: *opens door* Clear left!

Red Coat: Clear right! Bedroom's clear!

[Milena holds her hands up]

Soap: Now, sit down and unlock your PCs.

Milena: Why, or else you'll fuck the passwords out of me?

Soap: Not my style anymore. The three Americans behind me will.

[Grinch winks at Milena]

Milena: You there. Why the mask?

Ghost: To hide my face.

Milena: Interesting. Let's play a game. *takes all clothes off*

Laswell: Ooh, shit.

Milena: If you take your mask off, I might unlock my computers.

Sandman: That won't be necessary, sir. Wrong move, bitch! Truck, Grinch, let's take her to her bed!

Truck: Nice!

Grinch: Alright! *carries Milena*

Ridley: Seems that ten quid of yours is right, Red Coat.

Laswell: I can cover all of you when things need to get dirty, Alpha 6-3. Don't worry.

[Red Coat shakes his head]

Grinch: Last call, Milena, honey. Or we'll give you the best or worst monster fuck of you life.

Milena: Oh, please! Fucking the three of you is like a group sex with a boy band! You might be more interesting than the whiny young bloods in my security detail! Do you really think you can break me with one of my favorite pastimes?!

Soap: Stand fast, Metal Team. *equips S.A.S. Dagger* Then give us access, Milena. Or I won't be so gentle anymore.

Milena: *tilts head* Give me my high heels.

[Soap gives Milena her high heels]

Milena: *unlocks PCs* *accesses banking network* Trust me. Nothing in my banking will get you closer to Vladimir.

Soap: We'll see about that.

Milena: Vladimir's work is already bought and paid for, and all of his money is stored in his own banking network, which I do not have access to. *smirks* You're not very good at this.

Soap: Neither are you. All your men are dead, and your personal account is wide open.

Milena: Hmm. Your superiors would have to pull a lot of strings in order to access a powerful, law-abiding oligarch's personal bank account. An oligarch with strong connections to the World Bank. Which makes me wonder— Oh. It really was that easy. She is pulling your strings, no?

Laswell: What the fuck?

Sandman: Hey, HEY! *grabs Milena's face* What the hell are you talking about?! ANSWER!

Milena: *pushes Sandman's hand away* Try to steal from Vladimir's future, I would dare you. Try to steal from my future, then I will be ready. It was a fun ride while it lasted.

Soap: Why? Are you scared of Makarov?

Milena: Try his second in command.

Soap: Ivan Alexxeve?

Milena: Close, but wrong. The name is General Alexandra Makarova, callsign: Mother Wolf (This one is for you, 4RG4D3G4.). No one in the Ultranationalist Party goes way back with Vladimir than her. Childhood friend. Best friend. Wife.

Red Coat: Huh. Why tell us this?

Milena: You are about to steal everything from me. I have nothing to lose now. Death is better than facing her again.

Truck: She may be scary to you, but I think I can say for sure that she sounds harmless to us.

Milena: Harmless?! I can call Mother Wolf a lot of things. But harmless is not one of them. *shakes head* Those fucked up gangrape sessions. Even by my and F.S.B.'s standards. The painful and embarrassing role plays that woman made me do with our men.

Laswell: Sounds like she's reconsidering her life choices, Soap. Offer her an out in exchange for the identity of this Mother Wolf. I'll arrange it.

Soap: In that case, today could be your lucky day, lass. Give us Makarov or Mother Wolf, and we can give you a way out of the Inner Circle. Your choice.

Milena: Are you sure you are ready to know the truth behind that high-ranking VDV (Vozdushno-desantnyevoyska/Russian Airborne Forces) whore?

Soap: Yes. Get on with it before I change my mind.

Athena proceeds to open General Alexandra 'Mother Wolf' Makarova's VDV file. And it appears to have the photo of Watcher herself attached to it, but younger and more brunette than blonde.

Ghost and Soap: WHAT?!

Red Coat: (quietly) Oh, shit.

Ridley: (quietly) Oh, shit indeed.

Milena: Do not say I did not warn you.

Truck: LIAR! *slams Milena's head on keyboard* WE ARE TIRED OF LIES!

Milena: Then here is some truth! Enjoy!

Laswell: This bitch just fucked with us big time!

Grinch: This has Photoshop written all over it!

Milena: *giggles* If I talk to the little birdie in your ear in a C.I.A. black site, she will disagree. Hi there, Mother Wolf! Been a while! What is your American name these days?! Karen Bowman?! Amanda Ellis?! KATE LASWELL?! Whose high-quality penis did you suck for the mission this time?! The United Kingdom's very own Captain John Price's?!

Sandman: ENOUGH! We are dangerously low on patience now, Milena! Tell us what she actually looks like while you're still here or we will fuck you to death!

Milena: Really?! You do not believe me?! *laughs* Vladimir, you are a fucking genius! Whether you believe me or not, that is your choice. I fulfilled my end of the bargain. Time to fulfill yours, Task Force 141.

[thud]

Sandman: FUCK!

Soap: *reaches out* WAIT—

[Lightweight Desert Eagle fire]

[Sandman slams his right fist to the ground and angrily grunts]

After giving Task Force 141 the truth as promised, Senior Lieutenant Milena 'Athena' Romanova claims her way out by bringing Sandman to the ground with a head scissor throw, pickpocketing his Lightweight Desert Eagle, and shooting herself dead from the chin up before Soap could stop her.

Laswell: Jesus, 141! What the hell happened?

Soap: Athena stole Sandman's pistol and killed herself after claiming she told us the truth.

Laswell: She thinks Makarov's wife is me? I'm flattered.

Sandman: Still, we failed. Sorry, Watcher.

Laswell: Don't worry about it. Give me her laptop and her PC's hard drive, and I'll get the truth she's been hiding from us. We won't let this go unanswered.

Truck: Copy that. Commencing SSE.

Ghost: Pack 'em up, boys. We are leaving in 5 Mikes.

Soap: (off comms) Red Coat, Ridley, Ghost, a word? (on comms) Give us a moment, Watcher. We need to cool off. *opens door*

Laswell: Copy.

[Ghost, Soap, Red Coat and Ridley turn their comms off]

Soap: First floor. Come on.

Red Coat: What's the word, Soap?

Soap: Look, I'll be straight with you. Truth is the deeper we dig for Makarov, the more uncomfortable I get with Laswell.

Ridley: Are you saying Athena was telling the truth in some capacity?

Soap: Maybe. I want to know your thoughts on this.

Red Coat: Well, since you asked, I think Athena wasn't bullshitting. I've seen the look on her face when she talked about Mother Wolf. That was genuine fear.

Ghost: I agree. Soap, we've been meeting like this for a while now. Why don't we invite Captain Price to our little open forums?

Soap: Price isn't always with us and here now, is he? I don't think he can bail us out this time.

Ghost: But unless you have an actual solution, we have to trust him. If he knew, he'd be with us.

Red Coat: Careful with who you trust, Leftenant. Betrayal will never come from the enemy.

Ridley: People you know can hurt you the most.

Soap: And Price is too loyal to Laswell, inside and outside of work. We need to get a copy of everything in those drives before Laswell claims them. Simon, you were right to take pictures of Task Force Rogue's intel package before handing them over because she shredded them all.

Red Coat: Ridley?

Ridley: About time. I have a software with me that can copy everything in those drives without having them in our hands. Give me 15 metres, 4 seconds, and a clear signal, I'll get in, take everything, and no one will ever know.

Soap: You got it. Alright, let's get back online.

Ghost: Funny. You weren't exactly a tech wizard the last time we spoke.

Ridley: When you're officially dead, you get a lot of free time on your hands.

Sandman: We have 'em. Let's go.

Soap: Back to the boats.

Once the SSE is finished, Task Force 141 gets back to their dinghies and sails to Nikolai's designated pickup zone in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. While en route, Soap gets close and behind Metal Team so that Ridley can hack into Milena's hard drives.

[Ridley gives a thumbs up and secures his smartphone]

Soap: Thank you. So, what was it like to be officially dead?

Red Coat: Some part of us saw our unfortunate deaths as unexpected holidays.

Ridley: The other part sees it the way it truly is. The Deep State's attempt to stop those who were getting close to the truth.

Ghost: So you believe The Western Hemisphere Standoff and Special Agent Kate Laswell's Dirty Laundry?

Red Coat: Sure. Thought that was already obvious, given the fact that you've seen the articles about our "accidents".

Ridley: I guess having your own beliefs and opinions is now a crime punishable by death. Who knew?