The Vagabond War

by EnigmaticSerpent

Metro DLC Sam's Story Natasha is a bandit living in Vladivostok at the time when Sam is trying to get home. She enlists his help in the bloody clan war that her brother's clan is fighting with the other bandits. She has her own ideas. She is tired of losing her people and plots revenge on those who have wronged them, but she could have never predicted the consequences of her plans.

21. Contact

Chapter 21: Contact

"Vadim, can you make it to the fort?" Aleksander asked into the radio as we crested the hill behind the marshes.

Before us, a crescent-shaped cluster of buildings filled my vision. Gunfire reverberated through the buildings, as my mesh covered gaze flicked between the six moss and leaf covered figures before me jogging down the hill. The rain, heavier now, fell in cold sheets, but masked the sounds of breaking branches as we pushed through the thick shrubs and fallen tree litter on the slopes of the hill. It would be harder for anyone to hear our approach, so for once, I willed the rain to stay heavy. I hoped the suits and mist would be enough to hide us from sharp eyes.

"Negative," Vadim replied through my discomfort. "The men from the first boat have taken cover in the foyer of our building. We can take them out, but it'll alert everyone to our presence."

"Copy. Hold tight. Only engage if threatened," Aleksander replied, sliding down the rest of the hill.

"Holding," Vadim confirmed.

Within fifteen minutes, we'd rushed through the dark maze of the ship and sped east along the front of the island, cutting southeast down a wide channel dotted with the skeletons of buildings, where we docked the RHIB and continued on foot to reach the hills above the marshes we now occupied. I didn't understand why we were here. If Aleksander really wanted to keep anonymous, I thought he would have ordered us back to the fort. Instead, we trudged down a hill in the rain. Maybe he was worried about the reports of increased boat traffic from the mainland he'd been receiving in the last few weeks and wanted to get a look at them himself. Figure out why they've suddenly taken an interest in his island. I had a terrible feeling we were all about to find out.

I'd spent the entire ride on the RHIB with my stomach trying to claw its way up through my throat, my thoughts a chaotic mess, hoping to hell it wasn't Yuri finally deciding to come after us. Dread settled over me as cold and cutting as the rain. I knew it was. Who else would it be? I shivered, my skin icy under my sodden clothes and ghillie suit.

My gaze found Sam, who jogged just in front of me. If it wasn't for his shotgun, I wouldn't be able to distinguish him from the rest of the group. He'd been quiet the entire way here, and he'd kept casting grim expressions in my direction, but wouldn't quite meet my gaze. I guessed the lie we'd told Aleksander earlier was now looming sharply in his mind. It was for me. I could think of little else. What would Aleksander do to us if they found out we had a connection to the new threat to their peaceful island? Would they give us a chance to explain, or would they shoot us like a firing squad? Throw our bodies to the shrimp?

I peered at Alina as we cut behind the empty ruins. We'd worked well together, her skill maybe equal to mine. She'd even complimented me on my skill and bravery, and Aleksander had even been less of an asshole. I guessed that wouldn't last if they found out. Something inside me hoped they wouldn't find out, that I could go on pretending I didn't know who this new threat was. But Sam would object. He barely tolerated the lie to begin with. This was going to come out. And it was going to hurt. In one way or another.

"We'll cut behind the university buildings to the northwest and follow them until we reach the marshes." The rain muted Aleksander's voice, even in my ear. He led the way towards the rear of the buildings at a brisk jog, his rifle ahead of him. "We'll scout the situation, provide any backup, but our goal is to not engage if we can avoid it. We don't need any more problems."

As we crossed into the open space between two buildings, my heart thundering, a voice I didn't recognize filtered through my earpiece. "Pospelov here. We're ready and standing by if you need us."

I narrowed my eyes. What the hell was Pospelov? The name of one of their forts?

"Copy that, just hold tight," Aleksander said. "Let them fight it out. It's nothing to do with us."

I frowned at his back. Maybe that was true right now, but if Yuri was involved, it would soon have everything to do with us. They knew we were down here somewhere and they'd rip this island apart to find us. The forts could only provide so much protection.

"Yeah, copy that," the unfamiliar voice said, "but we're already here. Headed towards the outpost. We just want to get eyes on, in case you need backup."

"No, go back to the fort," Aleksander replied, holding up a fist as we reached the door to the building next to the outpost. He and Nikolai took up positions at opposite sides of the open doorway, sweeping the dark foyer inside.

"We just want to get eyes on."

Aleksander growled, and I removed my earpiece, stopping close to Sam. "How should we play this?"

"Let's just figure out if it's actually who we think it is," Sam whispered back, scanning the open space between the buildings.

"Who else would it be?"

"For everyone's sake, let's hope it's anyone else." His tone told me everything I needed to know. He suspected it was them as much as I did. When his head swiveled in my direction, I could guess what was coming. "But if it is, you will not lie again."

With a sigh, I glanced at the group crouched against the wall, before leaning closer to Sam. "They will kill us, Sam." I whispered.

"You don't know that," he replied in an equally low voice. "Aleksander is a reasonable man."

"You don't know that," I shot back. "It's what I would do."

He stifled a snort. "Not everyone is like you. If you'd bothered to get to know them like I did, then you might see that."

"Hey, you two make out on your own time," Nikolai chided from the door, his hooded gaze lingering on me for too long.

"Clear," Aleksander confirmed and gestured for us to enter. Nikolai tore his gaze away from me and strode into the dark foyer, weapon ahead of him. The others followed his lead.

"You're not sure how Aleksander will react, are you?" I asked, noting Sam's tense body language. "You say he's a reasonable man, but you're not actually sure."

The silence that followed answered for him. He wasn't.

Sam pushed me in front of him. "Let's just scope out the situation first. It may not even be them." His tone still swam with doubt. They would never let us get away. We pissed them off too much for that, but they'd taken their time. That seemed ominous, and I hated it. As if they were regrouping. Their arrival now was a bad sign.

"You have to stop talking to me like this," Sam hissed. "They're going to get suspicious. Now put your earpiece back in and leave it there." He gestured for me to enter ahead of him.

"Vadim, sit rep," Aleksander said as we spread out around him, scanning the open foyer and the weed cloaked stairs that climbed to higher floors. It seemed to be identical to the one we'd used as a refuge when we first landed, with rooms branching off in two directions. My boot caught on a tangle of lanky, trailing vine reaching in through a shattered window along the back of the building.

"We have eyes on two boats," Vadim reported. "Six disembarked the first and are now taking cover on the ground floor of our building. All men, by the looks of it. There are eight others in pursuit, firing from the cover of their boats." Vadim paused for a moment in which I thought my heart would explode. "Shit, they have a sniper. He just obliterated one guy from the first boat with a head shot."

My heart skipped a beat, and my breath caught. Fuck. Was Viktor was here? Of course, Yuri would send his second in command to scout the new island. Who else did he send? Was Grigor here? Any of the guys I'd assaulted the port with? Kostya? That final one hurt most. Even though I had no interest in confronting any of them, Kostya had been a good friend that might have turned into something more, if not for Viktor. He'd spared my life at the port, instead of killing me, igniting a flicker of hope while simultaneously intensifying the persistent guilt that gnawed at me.

Sam glanced across at me and I could imagine his dark expression full of doubt. What would I do if I encountered Viktor, or any of my former clan, on the opposite side of the battlefield? Would Viktor shoot me on sight or would our history hold him back?

I clenched my eyes shut. The sensation of Viktor's hard body against mine, our lips locked in a kiss, shivered over my skin and again I questioned how I could have jeopardized what we had. How I could have betrayed him. Pain shot through my chest as my heart tore in two. As I opened my eyes again, Sam turned away. Something told me he knew far more than I wanted him to. Another spike of pain. What the hell was I supposed to do? I couldn't have them both. The only logical choice was the one not trying to kill me. So then, why was that so hard?

"Keep your heads down," Aleksander ordered through my dark thoughts. "We are in the building next to yours, about to debrief."

"We have eyes on seven targets moving away from their boat," Vadim said. "I can't see where their sniper is. He's hidden himself well."

"We're standing by," the guy from Pospelov fort cut in. "Just outside the outpost, on the hill to the left. We have eyes on."

"Do not engage!" Aleksander ordered. "Get your asses back to the fort!"

"We can take them by surprise. They won't know we're there until it's too late," the other voice argued.

"Negative, Kirill. Do not engage! There is a confirmed sniper."

"Come on, we can take them."

I tuned out the debate happening over the radio, pacing across the edge of the foyer, eyes fixed on the chipped concrete beneath my feet, consumed by thoughts of Viktor and Kostya, so I didn't notice Nikolai standing in front of me until I almost collided with him.

"What the hell are you doing?" I snapped, scowling up at him.

"I was going to ask you the same question," he asked in a dangerous voice that had me instantly on edge. "What have you two been talking about that you weren't willing to share with the rest of us?"

I eyed his gloved finger as he tapped it above the trigger of his AK-12. "We haven't been talking about anything." I growled back, forcing myself to hold my ground.

"Don't lie to me. I saw you take your earpieces out."

Sam stopped beside me, brushing against my shoulder. "Just didn't want everyone to know that Natasha is nervous about working with people she doesn't know."

Nikolai scrutinized him with veiled eyes for a long moment and I tried not to squirm. I hated not being able to see his expression.

"Because we hadn't figured that out yet," he finally said. "You'd better be careful. Someone might think you're hiding something." His head followed me as I strode to the opposite side of the foyer, adding to my anger and unease.

More gunfire boomed off the buildings, followed by the too familiar crack of Viktor's Draganov.

"Get your fucking head down!" This time I recognised the voice that boomed in my ear, and I drew my lips to a line. Arkady. "Shit, that was fucking close," he said in a bemused voice. "That sniper just took a shot at us. I don't think he knows exactly where we are, you know, because we're still alive, but he's fucking close. If we move, he'll see us for sure. And I have no fucking idea where he is."

"I fucking told you to go back to the fort and not engage!" Aleksander barked, furiously gesturing for us to follow him.

A nervous pause followed before Arkady replied, "we wanted to get close, to see what was happening, but Kirill slipped in the mud and straight onto a fucking dead bush and they heard the idiot." He finished and someone on his end swore. "Technically, we didn't engage."

We weaved through forlorn, empty halls mottled with shadow, dust, and debris of the past life, now being reclaimed by nature.

"Now's not the best time for jokes, Arkady," Aleksander said.

I frowned at his back as the group entered an open, bright common room at the end of the corridor, with large rectangular windows and a perfect vantage over the marshes. We crossed the room, dodging dusty couches and tables littered with years of leaf debris, to crouch below the empty windows.

"Alpha," Vladik said over the radio, "do you need backup?"

Aleksander peered over the edge of the window, silent for a moment, then said, "put your suits on and wait just below the ridge line behind the university buildings. Only engage if I give the order."

"Affirmative, Alpha," Vladik replied. "We're on our way."

Sam and I crouched beside Nikolai and Buyan, glass shards crunching under our boots. Silence had fallen over the marshes, a tense stalemate where neither side wanted to advance. It seemed everyone had gone to ground since discovering they weren't alone. I imagined the orders being passed between Viktor and the others, and wished I still had access to their radio channel. Viktor would observe and calculate his next move, tell his guys to spread out and find the new threat, but they weren't stupid enough to walk out into open ground when they knew hidden enemies watched. They would stay in cover.

Hugging the edge of the window, I leaned out just enough so I could get a view of the surrounding area, very aware that Viktor's eagle eyes watched and waited for movement. Beyond a disheveled, wildly overgrown garden, the land dropped into two separate sloped tiers. Stairs grown over with weeds and grass provided access to the remnants of a road that bisected the edge of the marshes, dotted with unkempt hedges, stands of spindly trees and bushes perfect for cover. While to the right, the other wing of the apartment building jutted out in line with our window, overshadowing a small, circular courtyard.

My eyes darted past the boat we'd stranded in the middle of the marshes, to the two others just beyond it. One of them, identical to ours. There was no question it was them. I clenched my teeth as I shifted my gaze to the light bar on the roof of the wheelhouse of Yuri's boat. A flash of sunlight breaking through the grey clouds as the rain eased, glinted off the scope of Viktor's draganov as he shifted position. I raised my own scope, my heart drumming in my ears, squinting against the sunlight to focus on him.

There he was, lying prone, the barrel of his draganov jutting through the gap between the light bar and the roof. Burning guilt, despair, and desire for what we had clashed inside me. More memories flashed through my mind. Supply runs in the ruins, sparring, training and nights spent in the warmth of his bed. I forced myself to keep watching him, even though I had a powerful urge to be anywhere else.

Viktor stared intently toward a spot just to the right of the outpost building where I guessed Arkady and Kirill hid. He barked orders into the radio he gripped in his left hand. Probably telling them to split up and find the disturbance. A seasoned commander. Dangerous.

A moment later, Vadim confirmed my assumption when he reported two targets had broken off towards Pospelov's location. I squinted through my scope, towards the incline where they hid, catching movement between some trees in front of the outpost. My sight fell on Grigor, armed with a light machine gun, leading a man I'd never seen before. Probably one of Yuri's new pets. Another wave of dread hit me. Grigor hated me. Even before the port. He blamed us for Simon's death. He would no doubt shoot me on sight.

"We have eyes on," Vadim said. "Clear shot all the way. We can at least keep them from advancing. Do I take the shot?"

Before Aleksander could speak, the booming crack of the draganov answered instead. I threw myself below the windows, as did everyone around me, as Viktor took another shot.

"Report in, now!" Aleksander ordered, hunched below the windows.

"We're fine, that wasn't for us," Vadim replied. "One of the idiots hiding in the foyer stuck his head out and he painted his brains all over the wall. Fuck me, that's one hell of a sniper."

You have that right. I clenched my teeth as Sam turned his head towards me again. Damn, that was pissing me off.

"Does anyone have eyes on that sniper?" Aleksander asked, tentatively peering above the window frame.

"The boat directly opposite the one we were on," I answered without thought. "On the roof, using the light bar as cover."

Aleksander paused as he, Alina, and Nikolai shifted their sights in that direction. "Huh," he said, impressed."Yeah, there he is. Good eye. I can barely see him."

No. I just knew his tactics. That was his favourite post when they did boat assaults. Perfect cover, perfect vantage in such an open battlefield. And he had the skills to compensate for the boat's movement. I guessed knowing their tactics would be an advantage. Guilt leapt through me at that thought, feeling like another betrayal. I shook my head, catching Sam still watching me. Even behind the dark veil, I could imagine his grim expression. His hand twitched on his shotgun as he averted his gaze. Another spike of guilt.

"Shit. They're getting close," Arkady said. "Let us fucking engage!"

"No, Arkady, you are exposed. That sniper will find you."

"So will these guys if we don't do something."

"Hold. We'll engage from our side, give them a distraction they can't see. We have better cover."

"Don't take too long," Arkady growled. "We don't have all day."

"Here's what we're going to do," Aleksander said as he turned to face us. "We're going to split up into three teams and surround the marsh. Disorient them. Convince them there are more of us than there actually is." He glanced at Alina crouched beside him. "You take Natasha and Yevgeni again and take the south flank. Nikolai, go north behind the outpost and link up with Pospelov. While Sam, Buyan and I take the heat off them from the centre." He glanced around at us. "Everyone clear?"

"God and St Andrews flag are with us," the group chorused.

"Let's get on it. This is our rendezvous point."

"Be careful," Alina said as she brushed his shoulder.

"You too."

My heart skipped a beat, and Sam tapped me on the shoulder as he passed. "How are you doing?"

I glanced across at the group and shook my head, unable to say anything without giving away we hid something. He lingered, wanting to say more, but Buyan and Aleksander had already left the room.

He sighed and squeezed my shoulder. "Be careful," he said in a tone that implied those words had extra meaning.

"Yeah, you too," I replied, trying to keep the apprehension from my voice, but he already knew.

My gaze lingered on him, jogging after them. I didn't like the idea of being separated again, especially now, when things had the potential to go very wrong. Alina gestured for me to follow, and fear clawed at my stomach. We headed into a dangerous situation, all because those two assholes from the fort couldn't follow orders. Something inside squirmed as I reminded myself of all the trouble I had gotten into because I couldn't follow orders. I shook my head, refusing to believe that this was entirely my fault. Yuri didn't have to do what he did.

A few minutes later, Alina, Yevgeni, and I crept through the densely overgrown shrubs and trees of the southern flank of the marshes. Even with them next to me, their suits made it difficult to see them. Alina held up a fist, and we dropped to our knees behind some drab, olive green shrubs as gunfire echoed from the centre of the marshes. Aleksander's team were already firing and Vadim reported that the two hunting Pospelov had gone into cover and the rest of them were engaged in the fight.

We couldn't see anything from our location, so we had to depend on updates from Vadim, which didn't sit well with me. I trusted Vadim about as much as a fugly.

"All teams fire on my mark," Aleksander counted off from three, then more gunfire broke out from the centre and then from the north. We added our own shots, our bullets ripping through the shrubs.

"That's done it," Vadim said. "They've scattered. Two in front of our building. Two in the centre. And two just broke to the south. I think they're investigating the shots from down there. Watch your backs, south flank team."

"Weren't there eight of them?" Aleksander asked. "There's one not accounted for."

"Affirmative," Vadim said. "We only count six. Plus that asshole sniper."

"Yevgeni, watch our flank," I ordered as I switched to single shot. No use wasting unnecessary bullets. He nodded and pivoted to keep watch.

"Copy. What's that sniper doing?" Aleksander asked.

"He's scanning the perimeter. Keep your heads down." There was a pause as we continued firing. Then Vadim spoke again. "That was bold."

"What?"

"The guys hiding downstairs just sprinted for the trees next to our building. At least your diversion was good for something."

"Don't worry about them, just focus on getting Pospelov out of there."

"Okay, then let me take a shot at him," Vadim replied. "Then while he's distracted, Pospelov can retreat. I have a clear shot."

In the pause that followed, Alina stopped firing and replaced her spent cartridge, stashing the empty one in a pocket beneath her suit. "Let's keep moving," she said. I nodded.

As we continued down the flank, using the trees to shield us from Viktor's view, Aleksander spoke again. "It'll give your position away."

"We'll take that risk. I don't want to be here all day." Vadim said impatiently.

"Fine. Be careful."

"Pospelov, be ready to run on my shot," Vadim said.

"Affirmative," Arkady responded.

A single burst of Kalash fire immediately followed, while Alina led us between some crooked trees.

Another pause before rapid gunfire broke out again. I instinctively hunched, even though it was nowhere near us. Damn, there was so much going on I felt like I had whiplash. I only ever had to worry about myself, and now there was a constant stream of chatter in my ear. How did they deal with it?

On cue, Arkady swore. "That got us a few metres at most, before the assholes in front of the outpost started shooting at us. Now we're pinned again. And they're moving up."

"Taking another shot," Vadim replied. The draganov quickly answered Vadim's single shot. "Fuck! That sniper is really pissing me off. Can someone deal with that bastard?"

Alina fired another volley, which would hopefully help to distract him, but once Viktor got the scent of something, he was like a bloodhound. I scanned the misty trees around us, my gaze falling on a half dozen rusted cars and the hull of a bus crumpled around a large tree, overgrown with weeds.

"Hey, did you see that?" Yevgeni asked, aiming his AK-12 just past the bus and crouching lower in the grass.

I swiveled my gaze to follow his line of sight. "What?"

"I thought I saw movement next to that bus."

"There's nothing here," an unfamiliar voice breathed, and I pulled Yevgeni to the ground with me. "Alina, down, now!" I hissed.

She barely had time to settle in the grass when two men stepped out from behind the bus, weapons raised. The one with greying, shoulder length hair tied back in a loose tail, I didn't recognize, another newcomer, but the second, lanky, blonde-haired one, I did.

"Viktor said there was gunfire coming from this direction and he wanted us to find them," Dima replied, scanning the shrubs near to where Yevgeni and I lay. "And I don't know about you, Joseph, but I don't feel like arguing with him. He's been pissed off ever since that traitor escaped."

Traitor. I knew that's how they would see me, but hearing it spoken was like a knife through my chest.

"Sure, no one wants to argue with that bear, but haven't you heard the rumors about this island?"

Dima frowned over his shoulder at the taller man, uncertainly. "What rumors?"

"People who have survived and returned say there's something supernatural that lives here." He shrugged. "I don't know, demons or something. They appear right out of the ground and grab any poor bastard who wanders too far into the forest. And they're never seen again. I talked to a man whose friend saw it for himself! He was so afraid, he left Vladivostok!"

I stifled a laugh, and beside me, Yevgeni snorted.

"What the fuck was that?" Dima hissed, lowering his voice to a frightened whisper, as if he was suddenly afraid of being heard. I grinned, an idea striking me.

I shuffled closer to Yevgeni. "I have an idea to get rid of these halfwits."

"Okay," he replied quietly.

"We're going to be their demons." I twisted to glance back at Alina, who nodded. "Follow my lead."

A moment later, I took a deep breath and made the loudest, scariest impersonation of Seraph's howl I could muster. It wasn't as bone chilling as hers, but it was no less effective. Dima and Joseph stopped dead, just a few metres from where we lay, wide eyed and on the verge of panic.

"Holy fucking shit!" Joseph exclaimed, pivoting in a circle, trying to see in every direction at once. "Did you hear that?"

"The whole marsh heard that," Dima choked, pale faced, and backing up several paces.

Vadim chuckled over the radio. "Looks like your ruse is working. The guys in the centre are shitting themselves. They have no idea what to do."

Another howl echoed in the distance as someone joined in. "Great idea Natasha," Aleksander said. "You should see them. They're watching the trees like they're about to attack them."

I grinned and nodded to Yevgeni. He shifted further to the right and echoed my howl. They both spun in his direction just as Alina added another one to our chorus.

"Fucking hell, they're everywhere," Dima yelped. "Let's get the fuck out of here, Joseph!"

"Wait," Joseph said, squinting into the mist and taking uncertain steps towards Alina. "It came from over here."

"So don't walk towards it," Dima spluttered, looking very much like he was about to flee and leave his companion behind. I stifled another laugh.

"I can take it. How strong could it be?"

"Nah, don't mess with supernatural shit."

Yevgeni howled again, and when Dima spun in his direction, Alina shot from the grass, grabbed Joseph and swiped her knife across his throat, grabbing his body before it fell. She lowered it to the ground before dropping herself, just as Dima glanced over his shoulder, discovering he was suddenly alone.

"Joseph?" he whimpered, backing up again, eyes wide with terror.

Yevgeni shifted in the grass, leaves crunching under him and made a low moaning like a wounded animal. Dima's scream bounced off the mist as he bolted back between the trees.

I laughed as I moved over to Alina, slapping my hand against hers in a high-five.

"That was fun," she chuckled.

"Did you see the look on his face?" Yevgeni chortled as he joined us.

Aleksander laughed in my ear. "Alright, that's enough. Teams check in."

"We're with Pospelov but we're pinned while that sniper is watching our assess," Nikolai reported. "Nice howl, by the way."

Alina barely contained her laughter. "We had two here, but I killed one and the other fled. We're clear now and I don't see anyone else. Continuing on the south flank."

"Be careful. You heard Vadim's report, there's two, possibly three, headed your way," Aleksander said. "We're still engaged with two targets at the bottom of the tiers."

Crack.

My entire body jolted with terror as Viktor's draganov broke through the sporadic gunfire of the fight in the centre. Alina's head snapped to the right, her steps faltering.

"Aleks?" she cried in a panic.

"We're good," he replied quickly. "I think they're trying to figure out our location."

Alina's shoulders dropped with relief as we moved through the trees again. "Be careful."

"You too."

"The sniper has eyes on your location, Aleks. Stay in cover," Vadim reported. "Now's your chance, Pospelov. Get your asses out of there."

"Copy. Moving now," Arkady replied.

It was hard to focus on our own troubles with them chattering in my ear. My eyes darted to the mist shrouded shrubs, to the rusted shell of the bus. Movement. I froze, crouching.

"Shit, all teams be advised," Vadim announced over the radio. "I've lost sight of that sniper. He's moved from his post and-"

As if summoned by Vadim's words, another booming crack split the marshes, followed immediately by Arkady's frantic voice.

"Fuck, Kirill's been hit-" he trailed off, voice trembling.

"How bad?" Aleksander replied through bursts of gunfire.

I scanned the mist, waiting for the reply, but I knew Kirill was dead even before it came.

"He's-" Arkady tried, but stopped again, sounding as though he was retching.

"He's dead," Nikolai finished for him through ragged breaths, as if he was dragging the other man up the hill.

Arkady repeatedly swore over the radio until Nikolai growled at him. "Fucking move, Arkady, unless you want to end up like him. Aleks, we're retreating to the rendezvous point."

"Copy, get out of there," Aleksander muttered. "All teams, disengage and fall back to the rendezvous point."

"Hold," I said, fixing my Kalash on the bus. "I think I saw movement." Alina and Yevgeni crouched beside me, weapons pointing outwards.

Not just movement.

"Shit, I'm telling you, Andrei, we shouldn't be here," Dima quavered as he reappeared on the other side of the bus. "We were surrounded by them. They got Joseph, grabbed him and he just disappeared. I didn't even hear him scream. It was like he was just gone."

Shit. My eyes followed Andrei as he scowled at Dima. Suddenly, this wasn't fun anymore. Andrei wouldn't fall for tricks. I gestured to Alina, and we lowered ourselves to the ground. I propped myself up on my arms so I could still see.

Andrei shoved Dima against a tree. "There are no demons here, you fucking idiot. They're people."

"Nah, people don't make noises like that," Dima insisted.

"They're not demons," Viktor cut in over their radio, gruff and authoritative. My heart somersaulted at the sound of it. "They're assholes in ghillie suits trying to mess with us. Pull your fucking self together. Find we're they're hiding and deal with them."

"I'm not taking him anywhere. He's a fucking idiot," Andrei protested. "I'll go on my own."

"Fucking take him, Andrei!"

Andrei swore. "Shut the fuck up and follow me."

"Careful," I whispered to Alina, shifting my position and peering through my sights. "His Kalash is fitted with a sniper scope." I already suspected it would be. While he wasn't as good as Viktor, he could do a lot of damage, anyway. A thought flashed through my mind. This guy, I wouldn't actually mind killing. I never liked the sleazy bastard. But I didn't think it would be that easy. He wasn't as stupid as Dima. We would have to be careful going after him.

"What's going on, south flank?" Aleksander asked with concern.

"Aleks, we have a second sniper down here," Alina whispered. "The guy that ran from us must have found him and now they're close."

My gaze trailed after Andrei leading Dima through the mist shrouded trees, their weapons at the ready and scanning the surrounding shrubs. Headed in our direction.

"How close?" Aleksander asked.

"Close enough to hear what they're saying. Less than five metres, I'd say."

Aleksander swore. "Can you retreat without them seeing you?"

"Negative. They're looking straight at us."

He swore again and heaved a sigh. "Alright. You may have to deal with them. We won't reach you in time. We'll send up a flare and when they're distracted, take them out and get out of there. Let us know when you're ready."

Alina turned towards us and nodded. "Copy that."

From my prone position amongst the shrubs, I had limited visibility, but from this close, even the rain couldn't mask their footsteps in the waterlogged grass. But that also meant as soon as we moved, they'd hear us, even if they didn't immediately see us. We'd have no chance of an ambush without a distraction.

Alina leaned closer to me so that her shoulder brushed against mine. "Which one do you want?"

"I'll take the sniper," I replied, pretending I wasn't terrified. It helped that I hated Andrei. Dima though, I liked him. He wasn't the sharpest knife in the holster, but neither was he an asshole. He'd been my friend, and he didn't deserve this. I shut my eyes. This had to happen. It was them or us. Andrei wouldn't hesitate to kill us. And now, Dima probably wouldn't either.

Their footsteps were close. I judged them to be maybe a meter in front of us and closing. We had to move now, or they'd step right on us. Alina gestured for Yevgeni to stay where he was before letting Aleksander know we were ready. Or as ready as we could be. I inhaled deeply, fingers closing tighter around my knife as my heart drummed in my ears. This would be close. We had to be quick.

Aleksander confirmed, and a moment later, a brief burst of gunfire boomed through the mist, followed by the burning red tail of a flare that arched above the marshes. Our targets spun toward the flare, back towards the centre of the marshes, and Alina and I leapt from cover.

Dima stumbled back, his gaze fixed on the flare as it exploded with a fiery light that reflected eerily off the mist. He collided with Alina as she went to grab him, catching her off balance. Before she could wrap her arm around his face to silence him, he yelped and Andrei spun.

His narrowed grey eyes speared right through me as I prepared to go for his throat. He shouted and raised his Kalash, but I was faster, and with that scope, he couldn't aim with me this close. I lunged at him before he could react and smashed my fist into the barrel, knocking it aside. Beside me, Alina jabbed her fist into Dima's temple, pulling him into a headlock.

But Andrei was an excellent fighter, and he instead used the weapon as a club, swiping it at my head. I blocked it with my knife with a metallic clash. Andrei's eyes flicked to something behind me and I took the chance to slash my knife across the exposed side of his neck. It was only a glancing strike, but it opened a deep ribbon of blood that trailed down his skin. He swore and backed up, glaring past my shoulder, swiping blood away from his neck. Footsteps rustled behind me as Yevgeni moved next to me, his AK aimed at Andrei. To my left, there was a muffled gurgle as Alina swiped her knife like lightning across Dima's jugular. As she let his dying body fall, a stab of pain rushed through my chest as if she'd stabbed me as well. I shifted my gaze back to Andrei, grateful for the hood concealing my horror. He eyed us warily, shifting his weight between his feet as if considering running.

More gunfire towards the middle of the marshes split through the rain and Yevgeni glanced towards it. Andrei threw himself into a shoulder roll, diving behind the rusted shell of a car to his left, breaking our line of sight. I was slow to fire, numbed by the vision of Dima's blood gushing down his chest as he gasped his last breath. Alina, though, was on it like a shot, but the split second distraction had done its job. Andrei zig-zagged around the trees before the mist swallowed him.

I went to follow the sound of his voice as he radioed for backup, but Alina grabbed my arm, shaking her head."Let's get out of here."

"Down!" Yevgeni yelled, and I caught the movement of three shadows emerging from the mist just ahead of us, to the right and behind us. Bullets ripped into the trees around us as we hit the ground. Shit. That was fast. They must have been nearby.

And I recognised both of them. Anton and Anatoli. My two shipmates during the port assault. My chest tightened at the sight of them, cautiously scanning the trees and bushes, moving forward with measured steps. Hunters on the scent of prey. And I was their prey. It wouldn't be long before they found us.

We listened as their footsteps halted, not daring to move or even breathe. Tense, unsettling silence fell around us.

"They're here somewhere," Andrei said in a low, gravelly voice, but loud enough for us to hear clearly. "Close." There was a momentary pause, then the sound of liquid sloshing against glass. A sound I knew all too well. Panic shot through me as the clink of a metal lighter confirmed my fear.

"Those fancy suits of theirs won't protect them from fire."

Shit.

Alina apparently reached the same conclusion. As if our minds were synced, we rolled apart. Alina grabbed Yevgeni, and we regained our footing as two flaming bottles exploded where we'd been. I knelt into a covering position amongst a scratchy bramble while Alina and Yevgeni retreated. My bullets ripped into the trees around Anton and Anatoli, and they threw themselves into cover before answering with a barrage of their own.

"Come on," Alina insisted, waving a hand at me. She lay down a burst of covering fire, keeping them back, and I took the chance to retreat.

We sprinted back uphill towards the ruins where we could hopefully lose them, but they were on our heels. As we went to move position, a burst of fire peppered the car, one bullet whizzing past my left ear. Before I threw myself back behind the car, I caught sight of Anatoli directly in front of me, flanking from our right.

"Shit, on the right," I growled, my back slamming against the car.

"Another on the left, and in front," Alina reported. "Aleks, we're surrounded. We need backup."

"We're already on our way."

Nikolai's voice cut in, ordering Arkady to stay where he was. "Aleks, I'm on my way. I left Arkady at the rendezvous point. I don't know, he's in shock or something."

"Copy."

"Please hurry!" Alina urged.

"Yeah," I agreed, my gaze locking on Anatoli as he lit another Molotov. "They've got fucking Molotovs!"

My eyes followed its path as Anatoli hurled it, aware of Alina yelling at me to move, but I stood my ground, eyes locked on the flaming bottle. Instead, I stepped forward to meet it as it arched downwards straight at me. Flames licked up my arm as it fell into my outstretched hands. Wincing at the scorching pain, I pivoted to face Andrei, who advanced on our left flank and hurled it at him, anger flashing through me. Andrei shouted in alarm and dove out of the way of the sudden plume of fire.

"Fuck you, asshole!" I shouted, swatting at the fire burning my suit to extinguish it.

Both Alina and Yevgeni stared at me as I looked up.

"What?" I said. "I'm sick of people throwing these at me."

Throwing the Molotov back at them seemed to disorient them. In the confusion, we retreated towards the ruins looming before us. But they recovered quickly, and gunfire cracked behind us as we sprinted between the cover of the trees and the bottom of the first tier. Yevgeni screamed in agony and crashed to the ground a few metres from the tier.

"Genya!" Alina shouted in pure terror as she threw herself to the ground beside him.

I dropped to my knee, firing wildly as our three pursuers gave chase. They dropped behind the shrubs as my bullets charged towards them.

"Alina, what's going on?" Aleksander asked again with trepidation.

Bullets flew around us and I hunched lower. The sound of Alina unzipping her pack and rummaging through it followed, but I didn't dare take my gaze off the shrubs where Andrei and his companions took cover. Anton leaned out to fire, but I fired first, and he jerked back into cover.

"Genya was hit in the leg." Alina fought to reply over the roar of gunfire, pulling a fistful of bandages from her first aid bag. "He's alright, went clean through, but it's bleeding badly."

Yevgeni moaned in pain and a pang of sympathy squeezed my chest for a moment before more bullets pulled me back to my senses. Let her deal with that. Focus on keeping us alive.

"And might I add," I growled, firing another quick burst, "we are currently in a very bad position, with three targets on our asses. And I'm the only one able to fight them!"

"We're almost there, Nat," Sam replied as he ran, and a spark of relief and something else, something warmer, shivered through me. Damn, I wanted him here.

"Shit!" I yelled as I spotted Andrei lining up a shot and dropped to my stomach.

"What's going on?" Sam asked in alarm.

I paused as I almost said Andrei's name and scolded myself. "Ah, their second sniper is here, and he knows where we are."

"Pick up the pace!" Aleksander ordered.

"How's it going, Alina? Could do with some help here," I said, glancing over my shoulder.

Alina tied off the bandage wrapped tightly around Yevgeni's leg. "It's done," she said, picking up her AK-12 again and shuffling up beside me. "Stay there, Genya."

Yevgeni nodded, but he appeared to be in too much pain to move anywhere.

"They're directly in front of us, those bushes, maybe ten metres. The sniper's on the right," I relayed as Alina parted the vegetation to clear her vision. But I couldn't see anything. I gritted my teeth as I cautiously rose to my knee, staying hunched behind the bramble. Andrei seemed to be arguing with the other two. I huffed. The self-centered asshole always had to be right, even when he wasn't. I flicked the firing mode to single shot. Ten metres. Fuck, I could take that shot in my sleep. I rose higher so my Kalash cleared the bush, but movement in the trees a few meters beyond froze me to my core.

Even before I could make out his features, I recognised Viktor by the way he walked. Upright, and methodical, like he was marching, always with purpose. And absolutely furious. People knew to steer clear of him when he walked like that.

"Oh, fuck," was all I could manage as I eased myself back down.

"What's wrong?" Alina breathed.

"I know where that other sniper is." I gestured to the trees ahead, panic rising fast and biting like acid. "We have to run, right the fuck now!"

"We can't run. Genya is wounded!" Alina shook her head.

"Fuck. We can't let him catch us," I fretted.

"Fucking pull yourself together and get up there!" Viktor's voice boomed in response. My body jolted with deeply ingrained fear, with the knowing of the beast he could become when provoked. And I did not want to be anywhere near him. Everything I was screamed at me to run. But if we tried, Yevgeni would slow us down and it would be like shooting fish in a barrel for Viktor. We were stranded. Fucked.

"Do I have to do everything myself?" Viktor roared.

"Aleks, where are you?" Alina whispered in a trembling voice.

"What's going on?"

"That sniper that killed Kirill is here. I think he knows where we are."

"What? Get out of there!" Aleksander urged. "Fall back!"

"We can't!"

I leaned past the bramble, trying to see where Viktor was, but vegetation obscured my vision. If I wanted to see anything, I'd have to risk giving them a target.

"Coming up to the ruins on your left," Aleksander replied.

"Watch that sniper!" I warned, taking the chance and rising slowly to my knee again. "He knows what he's doing."

"Fucking move!" Viktor yelled again as he reached the bushes Andrei used as cover. He grabbed Anton by the jacket and propelled him forward, the others taking the hint and following. What the hell could we do? They must have relayed our location to Viktor, because he seemed to know exactly where we were. He'd stopped yelling, but in the heavy silence, their steps crunched loudly as they neared.

I turned to Alina, clenching my fingers into tight fists to stop them from trembling. "They know where we are, so the only chance we have is to strike first." I shook my head. Was I really about to do this? Fight Viktor? Who I had never beat in friendly sparring? And now who was far from friendly? Aleksander wasn't close enough. It was now or lose the advantage of surprise.

With my entire body trembling, I nodded to Alina, reaching for my knife. What I wouldn't give to have Seraph right now. She would rip through them like they were nothing. I didn't realize how much I missed her.

Alina nodded hesitantly, reaching for her knife. Probably knowing there could be no way for us to get out of this alive. Probably hoping Aleksander was closer than we thought. Fuck. Would I ever see Sam again? I shut my eyes, feeling sick, clenching my knife like a lifeline.

Their boots squelched in the boggy ground. I held up three fingers, counting down. On the last, Alina nodded again, and we sprang from the bushes. Like the demons we impersonated.

In the few seconds that followed, Alina went for the target closest to her, Anton, swiping her knife across his throat. I went for Anatoli, doing the same, but just as the knife touched his skin, Viktor grabbed me from behind. I would know the feel of him even in the dark. My blade tumbled from my grip while his arm snaked around my neck like a steel vice I had no chance at shifting.

Alina met my panicked stare with terror filled blue eyes as she struggled against Andrei's firm arm around her throat. Neither of us had a chance.

Viktor's arm tightened around my neck, and I knew I was about to die. I had seen him snuff out many lives with just one deadly motion. None of the techniques I'd had drilled into me over my lifetime could help me here. Not with the substantial weight advantage Viktor had over me. He was as immovable as steel. I just wasn't strong enough, especially with him slowly choking me.