| "Nightlights" | ||
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June 10, 2008 Petrenko's Dacha Southwest of Savvinskaya Sloboda 0330 hours "Minimal movement inside, you're clear and Alpha five," Jaime spoke quickly. "Alpha 4 and 5?" Paige asked pulling the small sphere from her vest pocket. "Clear," came Saf and Bella's replys. "Get your hotties out on five," she said mentally counting to five as she depressed the two buttons that would activate the thermal readers. She stood quickly giving the small orb a strong toss towards the Dacha. She lost it almost immediately in the darkness and returned to her tree cover. "Tac 1, go on the thermal." "Received Alpha 2, stand by." Paige waited scanning the Dacha and honing in on the familiar feeling of the killer-becoming ascending into her consciousness. It was almost like getting high. Almost. "Alpha 2 from Tac 1, target is in 4 north golf, two bogeys outside, one at each end of the hallway, six more on the 3 floor and static, 4 at the front doors, 4 at the back. Two rovers on the first floor, ambiguous movement." Paige fitted everything neatly into the pictures of the Dacha floorplan in her head as Simon counted it off. The target would be guestimated by some programs that Simon wrote, very much like the SIMS back at Section. As per that software the target was located on the fourth floor, 7 rooms in from the north, with two guards outside the room. Then the other guards around the hallways and doors. The six on the third floor that were static were most likely the day guards getting some sleep. That could potentially be a problem should they all wake up and decide to join in the fun. No matter, it was still less people then she anticipated and getting to the target would require some breaking in. She mentally checked off the various tools on her person that would enable her to get to the fourth floor and into the security system so Simon could breach it. "No roofers?" Paige asked thinking that that was kind of odd. There was a pause before Simon answered. "No roofers, confirmed." "Come up on mark five Alpha four," Paige rose as she spoke calling Saf into play. "Received," answered Saf. Paige moved towards the Dacha using the trees, which were becoming fewer and fewer as cover. The moon though it had started its descent was still bright, and to her killer-becoming eyes it only seemed that much more brighter. "I've got company," Saf's voice came calmly over the comms. Paige froze setting her back against a tree. Outside patrol of some sort she assumed as she scanned the woods in front of her. "Alpha three come up on me north west," Saf directed Jordy. "Alpha 2 you're clear," Jaime's voice came over the comm. "Visual on the bogey," Jordan chimed in as apparently she spotted the one Saf had. Paige moved forward again this time having to sprint between trees. "I've got you on visual, Alpha 2," Jaime said. Suddenly the idea of this being easy didn't seem so fitting now that Jaime had her in his sights. If he could see her, some mile or so away, then certainly someone a few hundred feet from her would see. Vulnerable? That wouldn't even begin to describe how she felt. "Engaging," she heard Saf say, quickly followed by Jordan, "engaging." Paige's eyes moved quickly from one tree to the next as she picked out a path to get her near the Dacha. There would be that one final sprint though, easily a hundred yards, in the open, no protection except for her own gun and instincts and Jaime's rifle. Good odds, she supposed, but not something she was going to enjoy. "Tac 1 from Alpha five, I've got movement inside," Bella announced. "Lost the bogey," Jordan relayed sounding pissed off and nervous at the same time. The words had just registered in Paige's brain when suddenly without warning the night air lit up in a white brilliance. Paige was in full forward momentum and she skidded to a halt and scrambled to the nearest tree. "What the fuck is this?" she hissed into her comm. "The whole fucking place just lit up all along the west of the Dacha, Tac 1," Jaime snuffed into his comm clearly pissed off. "I'm working on it," Simon responded. "Lots of movement," Bella continued from her vantage point, "one roofer now." Fuck, Paige thought. The sounds of things exploding reached her next. What the fuck was that now? "Alpha six?" Paige tried to press herself as closely to the tree as she could. It sounded almost like fireworks or maybe guns? Maybe weapons from inside? "I've got you Alpha 2, you're still clear." "What's that popping?" Paige scanned her immediate area, trusting that Jaime was right in his 'all clear' assessment but trusting more the feeling of something being terribly wrong. "I dunno, I have some fireworks going off, seems random. Alpha three bogey is directly north from you, 100 meters," he replied. That's right, and there was still Saf and Jordy trying to take out a walker. Random. Something about random. Kind of like the lights. But they weren't random. Remote? Had to be. "Tac 1, find the frequency these fucking lights are working on and turn them off - I am pinned out here!" she hissed again into the comm. "I can't find it," Tac 1 responded. "Alpha 3 and 4 in pursuit, heading towards..." Paige ducked her head and protected it as some of the fireworks or whatever they were went off near her. Way too near. She made the decision instantly. The element of surprise was the integral part of the attack and they had lost it and someone was clearly sitting somewhere getting their yah yahs off and most likely waiting for the opportunity hidden in the confusion to pick them off. "Abort, pull back, get back to the nest," she said quietly though she was clearly pissed off. "And Alpha 6 shoot some of these fucking lights down so I can get out of here before someone picks me off." A moment later, one of the lights hanging from a tree near her exploded plunging a small section of terrain into darkness. Seconds later another light exploded and went out, then two more after that. Paige easily maneuvered into the zagging pattern Jaime was creating for her until she was into thicker brush. "I'm clear Alpha six, thanks for that," she said as she bolted into the woods. (Alpha five heading back to the nest.) She heard a couple more lights explode as Jaime continued to cover her retreat by randomly putting out lights. She caught her breath giving herself a couple minutes to think as she stared hatefully at the Dacha. (Alpha six, going home.) "Status, Tac 1," Paige finally asked crouching close to the ground. Simon answered immediately, "Alpha 3 and 4 are pursuing a bogey, 5 and 6 are on their way back." "Call me if you need me, I'm doing a quick sweep," she said. She turned her comm off to only receive incoming calls and clenched her fists looking back at the Dacha. "Motherfucker," she hissed as the anger built inside. What the fuck was that? One chance they had to get the target and now, fuck, now they were screwed. Now they would have to regroup and head out again before daybreak, before the target could be moved. But the surprise was gone, the Dacha on full alert and they would have to come in full force. It would not be so easy now to eliminate their target. A lot could happen in a couple hours... Return |
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