RMK: Closed Eyes (part 2)

Chapter 2: Peaceful Day

In a secluded small village, deafening booms and gunshots ring out, through the night, shouts of men and women alike piercing what should be a quiet setting. Fires break out as the chaos ensued until trucks drove off from the razed towns, their job completed. They drive many miles until the reach their base of operation, a squared off encampment formed of a bombed-out and rebuilt air base, the most prominent feature being the large radio tower in the center. "See that. Thats some classic bigoted, Kalashnikov-wielding, nut-jobs. I like the tower though. Think they take after us?" Rian said, he and his squad observing the grounds from afar. He put on a pair of brass goggles, the lenses flashing amber for a moment before dulling back into the shadows. "Enough admiring though. Lets go be creators, huh? Get in positions."

Stacy walked down the road, soon entering the view of a spotlight, men shouting and raising their guns to ward her off. When she stood still they approached, guns still drawn. Meanwhile, Rian cut open the back fence during their alert, the twins and Carter following in and soon departing to either side, Rian staying behind and preparing his gear, in particular priming a large chunk of plastic explosive. The twins slipped into the barracks, no sounds coming out once they went in. Carter continued behind Raahi, a soft silent flash of pink from the barrack entrance. Stacy was dragged into the camp, her arms held behind her and the men asking for their superiors to find out what to do with the girl. Raahi and Rachit, now disguised in sets of "borrowed" clothes, walked through the encampment, checking for prisoners. Carter waited back at the barracks, waiting to give the signal for Rian to start the bomb timers. Stacy baiting out . The twins doing recon. Rian planting bombs. Carter on stand-by. 5 mercenaries against an entire camp that didn't know they were in a battle. As Rian said. It was a classic.

Rian sat at the base of the radio tower, looking around the compound. He had peppered this place with his own brand of gifts and now was waiting to hear from the twins. This could be two missions, either a hostage rescue or an elimination of everyone. But both ways ended with the press of the detonator and running away really fast. Rian looked up at the tower, thinking for a bit. He had heard that intel suggests the militia leader made it his own personal office. He opened his comm to Carter, "Hey Batt, I'm going to do something real quick," He said, slipping around to the entrance, jimmying the lock open with a knife, "don't worry too much, but I might be unavaliable." Carter radioed back in, "Wait what? Rian what are you doing?" Met with silence Carter cursed under his breath. The hare continued to sit in the near silence of the barracks, any man who was sleeping laid there dead in their bunk with a new ventilation hole for their brain. He reached under his coat, grabbing a silver case that caught the outside light, opening it and retrieving a cigarette, lighting up as he waited before he suddenly heard a low beeping. A team mate was trying to contact him.

Carter put his finger to the base of his ear, getting messages from the Twins. "There are no prisoners at the camp. Only bodies!" Raahi said in a low panicked whisper, "And we fear they will not start for Stacy!" Carter bit into the butt of his cigarette and attempted to get online with Rian, "Rian, they aren't taking prisoners here. We need to get Stacy and get out now!" After a minute of dead silence, Rian responded, grunts and shuffling in the background making him sound as if he were restraining someone. "Oh when she's in danger, we'll know." Suddenly, gunshots rang out in the center of the compound... followed by a savage roar that rang just as loud. Rifles went automatic and Rian opened all communications, "That's how we'll know. Help out Stacy! She'll look a bit different but support her out there. I'll start the timers now and head out once I finish up."

Spotlights were all on one woman that night, if one could recognize her as one. She was covered in bone and over nine feet tall. Her forearms were thick, solid, cylindrical pieces and at the end hung wicked claws that could each constitute their own weapon. What skin that exposed itself was a dark, bloody red hide that proved to hold up against the enemy's rounds rather effectively. Her legs shifted to a digitigrade, three jointed stance, feet having changed into talons that dug deep into the ground. And it was the unfortunate fate of several soldiers that met her tail, as long as her, barbed at the tip, and seemed to sense people even without vision of them easily impaling and eviscerating the men. It was this ruthless killer that the twins first saw and were told to protect. Rachit looked to his brother and nodded, reaching behind his back and withdrawing a baseball bat while Raahi slid a baton out from under his sleeve, a button press extending it to full length, and a derringer pistol from his other sleeve, supporting his brother as he weaved between soldiers in an almost unreal manner. Suddenly, Raahi found a stray bullet to his calf, a soldier looking down his sights to finish the boy. But a pink flash was the last thing the soldier saw, Carter running to the aid of Raahi, his brother continuing to hold help Stacy. Carter's eyes held a pink glow to them as he held a revolver that was formed of a mist the same color. The hare summoned what seemed an bar counter from the mist between Raahi and the action, getting back on the com, "Rian, when are we getting the hell out of here!?" Carter barked, tending to Raahi's injured leg.

Rian spoke up, "Slow your roll, Cowboy. You guys hold out for twenty more seconds and I-" His voice cut out to the sounds of a struggle and a drawn out repeated heavy thunking against steel, followed by what sounded like chopping and slicing. "Okay, I'll be right out!" Just then, glass rained down on the fighting crowd. Carter looked up to at a falling person and his eyes went wide from shock, pointing up for Raahi to see. It was Rian falling from the tower. Specifically he seemed to be diving from it, the catcoon having his arms at his sides and torpedoing into the ground. Halfway down, he reached into his bag, taking something out and with a swing of his arm, disappearing through a blue portal opened in the air, light piercing through the night's darkness before closing into nothingness. Another portal opened beside Carter, the hybrid popping up and the portal closing beneath him. This caused what now thinned ranks of the compound to focus fire on the three, Rachit running behind Carter's cover and Stacy using herself to cover the rest. Meanwhile Rian opened a rift, helping the others in, closing it once Stacy had dived in, leaving only a few dozen witnesses to attest to the squad being there. Witnesses, and the twenty pounds of C4 buried through out the compound that would light up the camp, the blasts decimating the camp. Many universes away, job completed, the squad stood and one laid in the rift room, gas-masked engineers with clipboards making notes on their status.

Carter turned to Rian, "What the hell were you doing in the middle of the mission?" The hare demanded, putting his foot down in frustration. Rian chuckled and took off his backpack, reaching inside. "I was collecting our bonus," He then pulled out a severed head, tossing it to a nearby engineer who fumbled it, "For a good job party." He said, giving a thumbs up, seemingly oblivious to the contempt of the group. "I'm done..." Stacy said, not having shifted back.