1"Our target is a cartel lord named 'Reagan Knox'. He's trafficked in millions of dollars worth of weapons, guns, and men to form his own psycho militia. He's managed to barricade himself in an abandoned packaging plant in the Auburn district and refuses to listen to any negotiation. Since former attempts at contact between his militia and SWAT troopers have failed, resulting in casualties, they've called us." The briefing came inside the APC on the way to the location, which Redd mentally questioned, seeing as a brief at base would have given them time to both physically and mentally prepare themselves for the task at hand, but it was just another one of Dark Signal's tactics of stopping the festering of expectations.
"Our job is simple," Griffin continued, "Is to enter the building at three different points. Fox, you'll be going in alone from the far rear near the docking bay. There's a drainage pipe below the water-line that will allow you to swim in under the main packaging bay. There, you'll wait in a concrete slot under said room and wait for I and Keegan to initiate stage two. Stage two consists of Keegan and I scaling the wall of a nearby building just outside the compound. Keegan will be equipped with a sniper rifle provided by the SWAT teams on site to distract the militia by shooting out windows and eliminating any members who find themselves separated from the main population. While they're momentarily confused, I will circle around and cross over onto one of the main roofs which will allow me to enter from a boiler exhaust vent. This should drop me down into a deactivated boiler just off of the packaging bay and offices." As this was all explained, the screen on the roof of the APC had been lowered down and had been displaying a vast, over-head map of the compound. "I'll head around to a vent adjacent to Fox's position, though at a higher elevation. While this is happening, Redd and Manny will enter from the rear and into the back halls. Using silenced pistols, you two will eliminate the militia occupying that area and take up position at both the exit door of the head office where Knox is hiding and the main exit of the packaging bay. Manny, who will be stationed at the PB exit, will discreetly toss remote-activated smokes under the conveyor belts on the left and right."
"Then, he will buzz my com. After that, he will join Redd outside the main office and wait for my signal. Once everyone is in place, I will buzz Fox who will detonate the smokes which will allow Fox and I to take care of the majority of the militia. Hopefully, this was draw out Knox which will allow Redd and Manny to eliminate all opposition. If he does not exit the office, it's all up to your reaction times. One of you will open the door and the other MUST be ready to shoot without hesitation." Griffin looked directly at Redd, eyes staring daggers. "Am I clear?"
In unison, Dark Signal said 'Sir. Yes, sir." Shortly after, the APC came to a halt and the rear hatched opened. From it, all of them exited and Manny stopped to close the hatch from a key-pad on the outer frame of the door. Redd hung back with him, holding his pistol with nervous, shaking hands. How the two of them continued to get paired up was incredible. Fate must've hated him. "D-Didn't top say our job was simple?" he tried, attempting to form some sort of conversation between he and his former mentor. Since their 'falling-out,' Redd had been placed under Keegan's watch at Manny's request. Nothing had hurt more, especially since he still wasn't sure as to why Morales had reacted the way he did considering that what Redd had said wasn't something most people would call hurtful. In fact, most would be flattered.
"This is as simple as it's going to get, Jankowski." Jankowski... he used his last name... Another blow to his already crushed spirit. His voice was so calloused and cold. Three weeks... It had been three weeks... He would've loved to question it if they didn't have a job to do.
Manny slung his pistol to his hip and sauntered off. Redd watched him for a moment. His shoulders were tense and ridged as though a stabbing pain was scaling his spine with arched, metal spurs. The posture was familiar by other means, prodding into his memory to the image of an elderly man, skin sallow and bones locked in the very same posture though without the strong figure. It was a stance of rage... rejection... once more towards him. The very realization shoved Redd even deeper into the bramble-pit. In spite of it, he followed.
The site was swarming with medical and SWAT personnel all rushing across the outer lots of the compound, many with no knowledge of what to do. Nothing they could do would aid the situation any and that made Redd almost glad to be part of Dark Signal. One feeling almost worse than fear was being helpless. In fact, it was one of the reasons he joined the military.
Jankowski shoved his thoughts to the back of his mind as he and his squad mate rounded the back-end of the farthest east lot and pressed against the wall dividing it and the occupied space. All that was left to do was wait. Redd didn't want to ride his thoughts again and yet the idea of talking to Manny seemed worse. He was wedged so hard between his options that he didn't notice when he'd been spoken to until Manny's burning brown eyes were locked on him expectantly. He stared back blankly, opening and closing his mouth in a few false starts before uttering his single-word question.
"What?"
Surprisingly, annoyance wasn't plastered onto the other's face. "How are things under Keegan?" the question was laced with a subtle cold that hung at the end of the sentence. Redd shrugged.
"It's... It's okay. He's pretty dry when he's not correcting almost everything I say... I just..." The words desolved on his tongue the moment he thought then up. He wanted to say something. He NEEDED to say something. It nagged him violently like a starving dog inches from a steak lying in the dirt in front of it. Only a few simple syllables... "I-I just... I'd honestly... No offense to Keegan, but I'd rather have... He's not the best. Has he ever done this before?" He couldn't say the words.
"No."
"Hmm... It shows..." They watched each other in silence. In the long minutes, Redd swore he saw a spark of expectance in the other, a simple burst of hope that vanished as soon as it appeared. Manny broke the stare and looked through the small gate into the compound. Redd couldn't even hear his breathing. In that moment, the blond thought back to his brother; to something Spencer had said to him many years ago. Redd was a freshman in high school, scared to enter the building, it's massive size dwarfing. He sat in the car beside his brother, his book bag clenched to his chest with arched, stiffened hands. He was petrified. Perhaps it had been the rumors spread by his classmates about 'initiation rituals' for freshmen when they were brought in. Perhaps it was as simple as nervousness. The fear was real all the same. Spencer leaned over the seat and wrapped a strong arm about his younger brother. He smiled softly and ruffled his blond hair with the tip of his chin.
"If you let fear control you, you'll never take your first steps. As scary as they may seem, they'll only get easier."
It wasn't his first day of High School again, but, as it was then, the fear was real now. Those steps needed to be taken, however. 'They'll only get easier.' He said the phrase to himself and it gave him but a shot of courage. "Why are you angry with me?" Manny's head yanked around. His eyes were laden with surprise, but his posture scrunched even more with tension.
"You know why."
"No, I don't. You being mad at me for the reasons you gave me makes no sense. Yeah, I hid a few feelings, but I opened up to you eventually. If that's what you wanted, then you should be happy, or, at the very least, normal. Why do I get the impression that you're the one hiding things?" The venom in his delivery was unintentional and he cringed on the inside once the words left his mouth. Manny reeled.
"We don't have time for this."
"We have plenty. It'll be, at the earliest, twenty minutes before we need to move. Start talking."
"I'm not dealing with this right now. Emotions off the job, Jankowski."
"Then why are you carrying yours on your back? You're angry over nothing and I'm left wondering what I did wrong. I thought you were my friend, Manny. You said that the squad is like a family, but, right now, you're acting like you hate me."
"I don't hate you."
"You're sure as hell acting like you do."
"Jankowski, we need to focus. People's lives are on the line today and not just ours. If you want to talk about this when we get back to base, fine, but now is not the time."
"Back at base? Where you can lock yourself up in the rec room or one of the offices and avoid me like I have the plague? I'm not talking to you through a door just to have you ignore every word I say. Do you want me to leave Dark Signal? Do you want me to leave you alone? Do you have a problem with me? All you have to do is tell me what's the matter and that'll be the end off it. If I'm going to my grave today, I want to know why I did with you hating me."
"I said I don't hate you. I just needed some space, okay?"
"Well, you could've just said that instead of walking around all moody and transferring my mentorship."
"Man, this is better than MTV." The disembodied voice chimed in their ears. As both of their faces began to burn, Manny barked back in a savage whisper.
"Keegan, what are you doing on this channel?"
"Why are your comms on?"
"Why are you on my channel?"
"Just switching through when I heard you guys talking. Turn off your comms."
"We shouldn't have to if we're the only ones suppose to be on this channel right now."
"Why are you on a channel at all? You're right next to each other. I can see you from here."
"We're suppose to spit up on entry. Now, get. Off. My. Channel."
"Sure thing, poncho, but you better lock it down with Blondie before Top stuffs you two in the 'get-along shirt.'" Before Manny could make a snide remark, there was a fizz of static and Keegan was gone. The Hispanic sighed, bracing himself against the wall. He turned his head lazily towards Redd and huffed in defeat.
"I didn't mean to get mad at you. It was misplaced and I'm sorry." His voice had lost all of it's poison and remained a shell of exhaustion as though the facade he was trying so hard to keep up had been putting more weight on him than he realized. "You're staying with Keegan, though."
"W-" Redd was cut off by a light beep coming through the comm much earlier than either of them expected. Manny pushed through the gate and motioned for Redd to take the path on the right while he circled around to the left of a smaller pump-house. They met back between it and the main building where they entered through a metal door. The hallway beyond was painted a soulless light blue, accented poorly by concrete floors. There were three doors to their right and only three, all closed. Redd took a caution step towards the first one, lightly gripping the knob and turning it in a way that produced no sound. It only rotated a quarter of the way before stopping, unmovable. It was locked. Manny slid past him and checked the next door in the same fashion. It, too, was locked. Redd crossed over and checked the final door. Locked. Redd glanced back and watched as Manny held his pistol at rest and followed him, walking backwards in case anyone exited the rooms or entered the building. They walked down to the farthest end of the hall before Redd broke off to climb a set of stairs, going sideways to watch his own six. Manny shuffled down towards another metal door, watching out of the corner of his vision as Redd ascended.
Back flat against the wall, he climbed up to a landing and froze dead. Just above the next set of stairs, he saw the door to the office. Two armed militants stood waiting at either side, heavy assault rifles gripped read in their hands. Both men were dressed in miss-matched body armor, one with a motorcycle helmet and one with just a baseball cap on his head. As Redd was off to their left, they couldn't clearly see him, but they would if he chose to wait, but he needed a plan. The options were weighed and Redd stepped back, goal being to enlist Manny's help. Before he made single step, however, the two guards jolted totally upright and walked a few feet forward to the window. They looked down through the glass and were turning back towards the office doors. Redd could see both of them. He lifted his pistol and fired off two silenced rounds into both of their necks just as the man in the helmet let out part of a word into the door. Redd rushed forward on ginger toes and fired off another round into each man. They toppled back onto the concrete floor with a dull thud. which was lost to the noise arising from the main floor below. The gas grenades had been detonated and Manny Rushed up behind him to brace against the door-frame. across from Redd who held his gun at ready.
Manny reached forward slowly, touching the handle lightly before allowing his fingers to slowly curl about the metal. They locked eyes and both swallowed hard as Redd rounded to be in front of the door. He could hear his own heartbeat. It welled up in his chest, jolting with the adrenaline that coursed through his veins. His muscles twitched, legs locked, and eyes watched as the metal door began to move as though in slow motion. His right index finger rested on the trigger, ready to execute the plan as it had been arraigned... Then... He had a thought... A single, wavering thought... What if the wrong person was at the door? That single moment of uncertainty slammed his balance and left him unprepared as a figure yanked the door the rest of the way open and lunged directly at him. In his doubt, there was hesitation and, by the time he had pulled the trigger, his gun was thrown off its aim and Redd was being thrown against the glass of the viewing window. Manny tried to raise his own weapon as the first bullet bounced passed his head, but stopped himself. Redd and Reagan Knox were tangled together as they crashed through the glass, falling back into the packaging bay below. Redd's heart skipped, his lungs hitching their breath as he and his attacker tumbled, Knox's features being only an angry blur before everything went black.
When the darkness began to uncoil from his body, Redd took a deep breath. It was almost dizzying, but he took another, greedily swallowing the air as though he'd been starved. The first thing he noticed was the pain. His head was pounding like he'd been struck with a hammer. His back gave the same effect, though with a more aching, bruise-like tinge. The next thing was that his hands were bare and clung tightly to a soft cloth. He flexed them, grabbing at it once or twice more before he willed his eyes to open. A harsh light above forced him to blink them a great many times before they focused. He found himself staring at ceiling tiles and an LED light. Redd turned his gaze downward. He was on a bed and bundled up with a light-blue blanket. To his left, there was an IV and heart monitor, both doing their jobs accordingly. It didn't take him long to realize that he was in the Fair Island Medical Facility, an attachment to the base that served as both a military and civilian hospital, but only as the ladder with severely needy patients that could not be treated inland.
With a choke of a breath, the blond attempted to sit up, but instantly hissed when his back, head, and left side protested angerly. He fell back against the pillow in a sort of shock. Slowly, he turned his head towards his left side where he'd felt the pain and lifted the blanket and then the grey shirt he was wearing. From his hip all the way up and under his pecs was a series of stitched cuts. There were many smaller ones along his hip and ribs, but one large one wrapped around his side and chest savagely. It didn't take a genius to tell what had happened. Redd dropped the blanket and rested back, heart thumping wildly in his chest. How badly had he screwed up this time? Did he get someone else hurt? Did he get someone else killed? In a quick, fluid motion, Redd jerked the IV from his arm, a rather painful thing to do- he actually regretted it- and forced himself upright. Everything tore at him all at once. The pain shot up through his body and only increased as he strained every muscle to move until he was finally upright on his own two feet. The change in position dizzied him momentarily before he staggered to the door of his room and forced it ajar. Almost instantly, he locked eyes with a man at a desk and they both froze for what seemed like far too long. The man, dressed in blue scrubs, then rushed over to Redd and placed gentle but strong hands against his chest in an attempt to be forceful in spite of the fact that Redd was a good few inches taller.
"Sargent Jankowski, you need to lay back down," he warned but Redd ignored him.
"Where's my squad?"
"Sargent, you are badly hurt. You need to lay back down."
"Are they okay?"
"They're fine and I'll call them over, but you have to lay back down, first." Finally giving in the the doctor's demands, Redd turned on his heel and shuffled back over to the bed. He slumped down, slowly re-positioning himself as the horrible, stabbing pain threatened to tear him in two. "Alright," said the doctor and he walked around and turned off the heart monitor which was sounding an alarm. "I'm going to go call your squad. Please, don't move. It's for your own good." Redd nodded slowly and watched the man exit. After that, he laid back and breathed. His heart began to relax and his lungs did and, soon, the pain was all but a dull ache.
"Redd?" Manny's voice broke the silence almost as soon as the door swung open. There was almost an urgency in it, all held together by a calm front. Redd turned his head to meet the gaze of his team mate who stood in the open doorway. His figure was tense, but not in the way it had once been. There was something strange about this tension as though the previous had been wiped away and replaced with something completely new and much more welcome. "How... How are you feeling?" Morales' form slowly relaxed as he leaned against the metal frame, crossing his arms in an attempt to give validity to his cool front. Redd could see through it like water, but he happily played along like it was one of Manny's jokes.
"Aside from the staggering pain all over my body, I feel a lot like butter." Redd tried with every fiber of his being to deliver those words with the most serious and calloused voice he could manage, staring back at Manny emotionless for the longest time. Moments passed and neither of them moved before Morales cracked and let out a warm chuckle, something Redd hadn't heard in a long time. It made him burn on the inside, a feeling he didn't at all try to fight like he used to. In fact, he welcomed it, hoping it marked a returned to normalcy between them. Manny approached him, sitting down in the arm chair to his right. He clasped his hands together and sighed, allowing his features to convey his relief.
"I have to say, when I saw you go through that window, I thought you'd break your neck and die or something. Great to see the injuries were minor, for the most part."
"Jesus, you don't hold on to any rays of sunshine, do you?"
"I'm a soldier, Redd. Thinking optimistically isn't being realistic. Logically, it's better to fear for the worst than hope for the best. It sure makes you feel a whole lot better when there is a bright side."
"Since when have you ever acted on logic?"
"I've been a brooding little asshole the past few weeks. Assholes act more on logic than most; maybe that has something to do with it."
"I don't think that's entirely true."
"Whatever." Manny waved a hand dramatically, snorting at the blond. A wide grin broke across his face and another wave of much-missed heat arose in Redd. Jankowski dropped his own smile, a question climbing out of his throat.
"Why were you mad at me?" Manny's smile, too, vanished and his eyes fell to the floor. He hunched over, leaning towards the blond and breathing slight. He sat there for many long moments, silent and still save for the occasional lick of the lips and shake of the head. He turned back and looked Redd dead in the eyes, his smoldering brown burning into the blond. Something was eating at the edge of them, something familiar but lost in distance and time. Redd could feel the fire swell in his face, but he was unable to hide it. All he could do was stare back, watching the emotionless expression before him. Suddenly, there was a twitch. It was a spark of something in those eyes and it almost scared him.
"We're getting some leave after this. The higher-ups were giving us a month to recover. I wanted to head to North Carolina to see an old friend and maybe go sight-seeing in Cherokee. Why don't you come with me?" Redd was taken back.
"Go with you? Really?"
"Yeah. I think we need some times to talk things out. None better than that on a road trip, right? Works in the movies." With his previous question all but forgotten, Jankowski smiled.
"Sure." With that, Manny clapped his hands together and gave Redd a pat on the shoulder as he stood.
"Great. I'll be back in a day or two to pick you up. Have to get some stuff moved around. Bye." Before Redd could even try at a response, Manny was out the door and through the lobby, leaving his team mate at a loss, heart smashing against his ribs like a bass-drum.
