Around 18 Hours to Departure.
An Unnamed US Naval Vessel in the Bering Sea.

The room they put me in was black, charred like sin and burnt as much.

There were no windows; just the vague frame of a single ominous door standing quietly on the opposite side of the room. There wasn't much furniture either, just a plain bed on which I found myself sitting, and a table and chair right in front of me.

There was a bitter, stinging taste in my throat. I had woken up here around a minute ago and had gone through my memories thoroughly, getting an idea of what had occurred to me.

There were soldiers. There was a bar. There was a scuffle. There was an agreement.

I winced slightly, feeling a pain in the side of my neck where one of the soldiers had fired a tranq dart. I was likely a captive now, in whatever Government building- no….

A frown appeared on my face, stopping my inner monologue. I placed one foot on the ground and tried to analyze my sense of balance.

That swaying…. Was this a ship? Where is it going?

Before I could consider what that meant, suddenly the door swung open. Two individuals walked in and in the shadow that their frames cast I vaguely recognized one of them. He was a tall man with broad soldiers, wearing a distinctive outline of a military uniform. The other was shorter and clearly more feminine, dressed in a more casual set with a lab-coat on top. She brought with her a tray that she placed carefully on the table in front of me. I could distinctly hear the chink of medicinal equipment.

A snort left my lips as the male figure stepped forward and turned the lights on. "I should have known that you were behind this Griffiths." I spat out with some vitriol.

"If it had been up to me, we would have been meeting in better circumstances, Hawk." My former commanding officer said. I examined his face closely; there were more lines there than the last time we met, but it was still just as annoyingly handsome. "But the situation has escalated far enough that we need to pull you out of retirement."

"Armed soldiers barged in and ambushed me in a bar." I spat out. "I'm sure whatever situation you have on your hands is not so important that you not only have to violate both my privacy and my fundamental rights but also risk the safety of at least two dozen people."

"You are getting orders, Red Hawk." The Captain responded with that familiar, militaristic tone. "You will accept them."

"If I may…" The woman who had entered the room then spoke up. I looked at her for a moment; she was unfamiliar with long hair tied in a ponytail and a lab coat. She seemed to be examining a syringe as well as a pretty thick stack of documents that she had brought along with her.

"Who are you?"

"This is Doctor Naomi Hunter. She's a researcher as well as the head of SKYHOUND's medical staff." Griffiths introduced her.

"It's been a pleasure meeting you, Red Hawk. I have heard much about you." She says with a short nod and a smile. There was an odd fire in her eyes. "I have read your files thoroughly as well. I must say, you are quite impressive."

I scratched my chin, uncertain of the sudden praise. "Well, I suppose I should say I'm flattered." I said with a feeble smile before turning to glare back at my former unit commander.

"Back to the matter at hand." Griffiths spoke up. "Five hours ago, a group of highly trained, experimental soldiers seized a top secret research facility for themselves. The facility in question is located on Shadow Moses, a remote and isolated island to the Northeast of the Bering Strait."

I blinked at that before letting out a low whistle. "That's the situation you're talking about? Damn, someone screwed up big time, didn't they? What are these soldiers you're talking about?"

"They're Next Generation Special Soldiers led by rogue members of SKYHOUND. They've issued a threat to the United States Government for a single demand, and they say if that demand is not met, they'll launch a nuclear weapon."

I frowned at that. That didn't feel right. "A nuclear weapon?"

"That's right. In addition to being a top secret research facility, Shadow Moses island used to be a nuclear disposal site." He elaborates. "All kinds of defunct nuclear material as well as mechanisms to launch and deploy a nuclear missile have been disposed of there. They have stated that if their demands are not met, they would launch an ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile) at a major city on the North American Continent."

He handed me a copy of a map of the United States and Canada, with some possible targets marked out. Vancouver. San Francisco. Seattle. Chicago. Detroit. Toronto.

Those were marked as the more likely targets. There were some marked to have a lower probability in comparison: Philadelphia. Boston. Connecticut.

Washington DC with an asterisk. New York in blue marker.

Seeing all those names, and the likely death toll that could come from even a small nuclear device made me flinch though, as I put the map aside. My stomach flip-flopped slightly, as Dr Hunter handed me a glass of water. "Thank you." I said to her and she nodded back.

"Tell me more." I said simply to Captain Griffiths, who nodded and continued.

"The situation right now is dire, true. But not entirely hopeless. Once you accept to undertake this mission, you will have two main objectives: first, you have to save the DARPA Chief, Donald Anderson as well as the CEO of the Odessa Corporation, Amelia Clark. From our reports, it seems that they are being kept as hostages there."

"Those are some damn heavy duty hostages." I mumbled.

"Second, you need to determine the capacity of the terrorists to be able to conduct a nuclear strike. If they are capable of launching a missile, you must stop them."


"That's a huge fucking ask, you know that?" I huffed slightly. "It's a really nice way to treat your pal, Stardust, pulling him out of retirement this way."

"You are needed, Red Hawk, and you will answer." Griffiths responded, his voice like steel. There was a hint of disdain there as well. "Besides, it's not like your life in New York was any great."

"What I do with my life is frankly none of your business." I fired back. "I was content with my lifestyle as a civilian."

"Lifestyle, you say? I wouldn't call sitting at home in the day and wandering the city at night a lifestyle. You don't seem to have a job, you don't seem to have friends, you don't even have any hobbies anymore do you?" Griffiths pointed out. "You can call that 'existing', I suppose. But not 'living'."

"Ignoring the blatant spying your lot have been doing on me, it's none of your fucking business Stardust." I glared at the man. "Why me anyway? Can't find a better attack dog in the thousands of troops the US Armed Forces have at their disposal?"

"Even if we could find a suitable agent, they aren't you. Like it not, Hawk, you're a legend. A symbol. You are very easily the best ever soldier in the history of SKYHOUND. But even you aren't some paragon." He narrows his eyes. "There's plenty of black in your ledger you're ashamed of to keep you locked up in a military prison for a long time."

"Oh? Blackmail? That's low of you, Griffiths."

"Call it what you will. It doesn't matter. I look at it as a more aggressive variety of negotiations myself." He paused for a moment. "But I think no matter what I say, I know you will accept this chance to get on the field."

"Oh? And why is that?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Because I know you, Hawk." He says simply. "At your core you aren't a soldier. You aren't a patriot either. At your core, you are a good person. If innocent people are in danger, you won't simply leave them to their fates."

"Like now?"

"Like now." He confirmed.

"I'm sure I don't have to be the one to point out the hypocrisy of your words." I said with a short yawn. "A good person wouldn't have any black in his ledger as you put it."

"Oh, Hawk. Only a good person would actually be ashamed of the skeletons in their closet." Stardust sighed, and suddenly I realized how old he felt. I remember meeting him first when he was in his thirties. It had been ten years since then. Despite the youthful vigor of his voice, I could see the strands of gray on his hair.

"...no, I guess you had that part figured out." I acknowledged with a sigh of my own. "Dammit. I can't leave. Not now, I suppose. If there are people in danger and I don't help… well, I guess that would be on me." I clenched my fist.


"Tell me more about this facility on Shadow Moses. I don't believe I am quite familiar with it."

"No. You are not. It's a top secret research facility, arguably one of the most secret ones used by the Government. Even I am not privy to all the details of what was being researched there. But I can tell you a few things; particularly about the facility's nature as a nuclear disposal site."

"A disposal site for nuclear materials…" I scratched my chin. "They dismantle warheads and such there?"

"That's correct, though I suppose calling it a 'disposal facility' would be a bit of a misnomer." Stardust acknowledged. "While some dismantling work used to occur there, it's mostly used as a storage facility for excess nuclear material and warheads no longer in service."

"Used to occur…?"

"The facility was converted into a research facility starting from 1995 onwards. By the turn of the century, it ceased being used as a nuclear disposal facility entirely and was instead reconstructed to properly act as a permanent research site."

"Do they really have the power to launch an ICBM?" I inquired. "Just because you give someone a ruined piano, doesn't mean they suddenly have the power to fix and play it."

"They do." He confirmed. "They've even sent the serial code of the warhead they've planned to launch. It was verified that at the very least, they do have the capacity to detonate a bomb, if not outright launch it."

"Have you been able to determine anything about their plans or numbers via radar or satellite?"

"The buildings themselves are shielded, and large portions of their infrastructure is located underground." Stardust had a grim look on his face. "There's no way to tell what's going on inside, even with our most advanced intelligence gathering equipment."

"So I need to go in there, gather intelligence, rescue the hostages, kick butt and stop a nuclear strike. A normal Tuesday I suppose." I snarked. "What's my insertion method?"

"We will be sending you there via sub. The base has considerable aerial defences, so an aerial insertion would be impossible. And you will be going solo; as much as an ally would be helpful, for a stealth and rescue op, going in alone would be ideal." He explained. "You will be dropped off a few miles from the base so that their underwater sonar won't detect you. Then you will be launched via a one-man SDV."

"Like a torpedo, huh?"

"Correct. We are preparing a specialized Vehicle for you, with silencing and anti-detection systems, as we speak. It should carry you almost all the way to the island without being detected, allowing you to conserve your strength for the real mission."

"Still, it's Alaska we are talking about here." I said grimly. "I'm good, but I don't particularly fancy my chances in sub-zero Alaskan temperatures."

"Don't worry about that." Naomi chimes in. "Your sneaking suit will be made of the latest in poly-thermal technology. Plus, we have a solution of nano-machines and anti-freezing peptides here that should keep you warm in even the harshest of winters. You could go out in the snow in the nude if you'd like with this." She says, showing me a syringe and wagging an eyebrow at me.

"What about my equipment?"

"You'll have to acquire everything on site. Outside the fact that this is a top-secret black op, standard equipment would be useless in this mission anyway."


That was an odd statement to make.

"Can you elaborate on why?"

"You should know what you're up against anyway." Griffiths nods but then hesitates. "Though you can probably answer that question yourself. Tell me, what is the purpose of SKYHOUND?"

I blinked at the odd question. "To… defend the United States from all manner of supernatural threats?"

"That's correct. First established in the 1960s after the Babel Incident, the US Military and Government became very keen on gaining an edge in the supernatural aspects of the world order. That was possibly the most secret theater of the Cold War after all; a hidden arms race where the Soviet Union and the United States combated each other on their ability to understand and interpret the supernatural side of the planet."

"SKYHOUND was to be the first and main line of defence against the supernatural for the US Government." Stardust continued. "The best and the brightest were brought together for this unit; elite soldiers like you and me, the best scientific minds like Miss Naomi over here, even many civilians and people from other countries who have had entanglements with the supernatural and have a better understanding of it."

"Our unit was crucial, but as the Cold War came to an end we were forced to confront an uncomfortable truth; that those of the supernatural are well and truly beyond humanity's grasp." He let out a defeated sigh. "Our knowledge of them grew. Our understanding of Gods, Devils and Angels swelled before we knew it. And we found ourselves utterly and completely defeated by our realization of all of humanity's efforts. All of our wishes and dreams and scientific advancements were utterly meaningless to their arcane might."

"Around the time you first joined SKYHOUND, there was a shift in priorities. Unlike before, military action was no longer our priority. The US Government liked to have a way to handle supernatural threats; in particular rogue Vampires, Devils and such were starting to become a real problem during your tenure here, as you are more than likely familiar. But research has become our primary objective. No longer would we focus on the annihilation of our enemies, but rather we shall study fantasy itself to surpass it."

"The soldiers you will face on Shadow Moses aren't ordinary men. They are the culmination of efforts of countless individuals over the last 45 years since the United States have taken an active stance against the supernatural. There are likely stronger humans, members of the Church and Magician Organizations, but of all pure humans in the world? The Next Generation Special Forces are on the very top."

There was a pin drop silence at the end of that oration. "And you're sending me to face them?"

"There are reasons; very good ones, why you are the only agent, active or inactive, who could properly succeed in this mission." The Captain acknowledged. "However, if I were to narrow them down, perhaps your record as an infiltration specialist and a solo operative is the most relevant. As a soldier, you're arguably better than a hundred ordinary ones put together."

I frowned. "I don't believe that."

"Doesn't make it any less true though. What was your record again? Sixty deployments, sixty successes? That's more deployments and successes than any SKYHOUND member in history. Hell, most normal agents don't have an 80 percent success rate, let alone your 100 percent."

"Stop it." I said. I was fully sick of it. "I don't want to hear any more about it."

"I understand." Griffiths said with raised hands.

"What makes these Next Gen Soldiers so strong anyway?"

"There are a few reasons." Naomi spoke up. "For starters, soldiers chosen for the Next Gen program are put through an incredibly harsh training program that pushes their physical and mental ability to the limit. Virtual simulations mostly, along with a highly advanced exercise and nutrition plan, but good enough to be not only substitute for but surpass that of real world scenarios.

"Wonderful." I said wryly. "I have to be worried about a bunch of video gamers."

"Additionally, soldiers part of the program have to be of a certain genetic profile. That should allow them to undergo further gene therapy to drastically improve their overall combat capacity." She continued, without missing a beat. "They have physical abilities well above normal humans. They can lift almost over five times their own body weight, have speed on par with high level Olympic sprinters, lightning fast reactions and quite a few of them have developed an advanced IQ of 170 and higher. Of course, everything I spoke of so far is further augmented via specialized equipment."

"Their equipment?"

"Specialized suits designed to protect from mystics and armaments capable of harming them." She clarified. "Naturally, anything designed to handle the Supernatural can deal with humans just as easily, probably more so. These are likely the most advanced equipment ever made by human hands not affiliated with the Supernatural. Their abilities are almost touching the level of fantasy themselves you know."

"Ah, I understand." I turned back to Griffiths. "So if I have to go up against anyone in there, I should steal their equipment to use myself, huh."

"Ideally you shouldn't be going up against any one at all." He admitted. "But I suppose if it came down to it, a confrontation would be inevitable. Especially considering that the masterminds of the case have a connection to you."

Huh? "To me?" I asked in a confused, clueless tone.

Stardust nodded, as he pulled out a dossier that he handed to me. "Special Operations SKYHOUND. Arguably the most secretive unit in the American Military Hierarchy. We don't even exist in the public eye, only in some documents in the basement of the Pentagon. But if these six succeed, I suppose everyone would learn about this unit and its history."

"Six members of SKYHOUND are leading the terrorist group. All of them hardened veterans, all of them incredibly dangerous. Silent Sparrow, a fierce and skilled swordsman. Sandy Duck, a stealth and camouflage specialist and a veteran sharpshooter. Burning Dove, an urban warfare specialist with powerful pyrokinetic abilities. Melting Eagle, an aerialist as well as a user of violent arcane arts. Bone Crow, a necromancer, puppeteer and master of healing magic."

"Well that sounds like a charming little band." I quipped. "Shame we're meeting in such circumstances."

"And finally, in charge of the group, SKYHOUND Squad Leader: Night Hawk."

That made me freeze for a moment.

"Night… Hawk…?"

"He shares your code name, yes." Griffiths had a grim look on his face. "Turn the Dossier in your hands to Page…. 29." He says with some hesitation.

I do as he asks.

I gasp, as a photo looks back at me.

"Like looking into a mirror isn't it?" Griffiths says with a wry tone. Beside him, Naomi is leaning in slightly, trying to take a glimpse at the photo that I have in my hands now.

"The skin tone is different. And his hair is much longer but… our features…. They're exactly the same!"

I feel stupefied for the first time in a long time. "I have a…. twin?"

"Seems like it." Stardust shrugged. "I don't know all the details, but it seems like you were likely separated at birth. You were raised in an orphanage, correct?"

"Yeah…"

I nodded, still in a bit of a daze.

"Are you okay?" Naomi suddenly asked, her gaze warm and concerned. It made me feel slightly strange, how she looked at me.

"Yeah… I think so." I raised my hands and pinched the bridge of my nose, before clapping my hands on my cheeks. "I'm good. I'm ready."

I turned back to Stardust.

"Tell me more. Tell me about this Night Hawk."

"We don't know his real name. We do know he was raised in the United Kingdom, and that he participated in the Gulf War as a teenager. He was involved with the British Special Air Service during that time. Didn't you participate there too?"

"Yeah, I was a kid myself at the time." I admitted. "I infiltrated Western Iraq during my tenure with the Green Berets."

"The details about Night Hawk's deployment are classified, but he apparently dealt a lot with information and intelligence gathering for the British Secret Intelligence Service. He vanished for a few years after that, going god knows where. He resurfaced a few years ago and he joined SKYHOUND soon after your retirement."

"Disappeared? So there's a gap in the file? How the hell did he even get into SKYHOUND with that?" I wondered.

"I don't have a clue, Red. A lot of details of this one's files have been completely redacted or altered. Apparently, Night Hawk has a lot of pull with some Generals and leaders in both the military and the current administration;he likely had leverage of some kind to be able to transfer into the unit. Possibly blackmail, though it seems unlikely to me." He paused for a moment. "He brought the aerialist, Melting Eagle in as well. She acts as one of his main lieutenants and as his right hand."

"Could he have been planning this coup all along?" I couldn't help but wonder.

Griffiths shrugged. "Possibly, it's difficult to say what his intent truly is and what he aims to do now. Regardless, we need you to go and stop him."


I looked up at him. "What's your stake in all this exactly, Stardust?"

"My… stake?"

"I was under the impression that after Nunavut, you were planning to retire, same as me."

"And I did. From active duty. I still stayed on in an advisory capacity."

A frown appeared on my face. "Why?"

"Why did I stay? I am not in liberty to discuss that with you Hawk. But if you really are that curious, let's just say that the Government made me an offer that convinced me to stay on. And due to these circumstances, I am going to be acting as both an advisor to you as well as the head of your mission control."

"Mission Control, huh… who else is going to be supporting me then?"

"I will be there." Naomi chimes in. "I'll be sharing a frequency with the Captain here. I'll play the role as an advisor to you, regarding the SKYHOUND agent's capabilities as well as providing medical expertise. I was involved in the genetic therapy experiments after all."

"We've also recruited a military engineer for more technical knowledge." Stardust added. "David North is a Canadian military engineer and tech expert who has been helping us with all kinds of cases. He will provide you with information about their technology and weapons as well as manage your communication and radar systems."

"Alright then. Anyone else?"

"Finally, we have an exorcist from the Church joining us. He will provide you information about more arcane matters, advising you about what kind of mystical arts you may encounter."

"An exorcist? Now that's a rare thing." I commented. Last I knew, the US Government and the Holy Church had a bit of a tense relationship. "Is the Vatican approving of this mission?"

"The Vatican doesn't know that he's here." Stardust clarified.

"A rogue Exorcist then?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Retired, more like. He still has good standing with the Cardinals and the Pope. But you know him, of that, I am pretty sure." I blinked at that. "You met during the Austin Incident."

Oh. Oh, damn it….

"Not him." I groaned slightly. "I know we worked together but that guy's personality is shit."

"Regardless of your feelings, you cannot deny that Kirei Kotomine wouldn't play the role of advisor well. He is an experienced and respected man, who is well versed in the supernatural."


Fun Fact: I chose page number 29 for the page where Liquid- I mean, Night Hawk's image was because 1929 was the year when the novel, "Les Enfants Terribles" was first released. If you know, you know.

Also the MC doesn't know shit by the way. He doesn't know anything about Metal Gear, and is only very tangentially aware of High School DxD, having only somewhat heard as that weird harem series people wrote fanfics about. He is definitely more aware of Fate though, having actually seen the anime a couple of times and played Grand Order. As for SMT…. we'll see.

I planned on writing a lot more of this, but decided to continue the Briefing in 0.3. The chapter was getting too big, and I thought this cliffhanger would be too good to pass up on. Next chapter should come in a day or two. Hope it works, I suppose?

Also, forgive me if I am not very accurate with descriptions of the United States Military and stuff. I am not a USian. If I get some of my facts incorrect or I make some mistakes, let's just call it an AU thing.