"Can't fucking breathe in this thing…" Loukas complains. He gently shuffles on the mask in hopes of getting more breathing room.
"Of course, they're extra disposable," Wilhelm jokes.
"Looks like someone finally discovered what the 'D' in D-Class stands for," Javier laughs.
"Let's stay on task, please," Izumi voices.
"You act like this is your first Op," Javier replies.
"That wasn't an Op; it was a death sentence," she hisses.
"The fuck happened on this Op Javie?" Loukas interrogates.
"Go ahead and explain, Javie," Izumi scowls. Her voice articulates clear dislike, especially for Javier's name.
"Lips are sealed; maybe our field medic can shed some light," Javier deflects. Ears perk up to Izumi's voice. She sighs heavily in defeat.
"Javie, myself, and several others were dropped onto an island, completely unarmed; a trial by snake. Everyone had one objective: survive the sweeping team for a week. They were a heavily armed squad sent by the Emissary to kill us as a training exercise.
By the third night, they had over twenty confirmed kills. Javie and I were holed up in a ruined factory building. I went on a supply run and he left with everything," she explains.
"She forgot to include that she had a grand idea of all of us taking them down by brute force. Third night we attacked them with sticks and stones and only a handful of us survived: the lucky and the smart who didn't join the raid. Izumi ran once she saw we were clearly outmatched; by then half our comrades were gunned down," Javier cuts her off.
"And then you abandoned her to die," Wilhelm pieces together.
"Full disclosure, I sent her to where I thought the sweeping team was camped. I essentially sent her to the gallows. Look, we're both bad people, but at least I face the music," Javier adds.
"Let's just keep going," Loukas sighs. Javier leads with Loukas while Izumi hangs behind Wilhelm. They wander down the street block hoping to exit the residential area.
A sudden crash of glass rings out from their two o'clock. Javier instinctually pulls Loukas down and covers his head. Wilhelm aims his rifle while Izumi throws herself to the pavement.
Dead silence fills the air as they remain in a stand-still. Javier looks up to the store it came from. Javier looks at Loukas and holds up three fingers, then two.
"Moving up!" Javier whistles as he and Loukas dash towards a car for cover. Wilhelm begins firing at the store's windows before grabbing Izumi and pulling her to cover in an alley.
"Lost eyes on the enemy!" Wilhelm whistles back.
"CP, this is Gamma 2-1: Heard a crash, believed to be a human target. Engaging, over," Javier radios.
"Copy Gamma 2; proceed with caution and extreme prejudice. Out," CP returns.
"Paul, what do you have on you?" Javier asks.
"Frags, sting, and smokes," Loukas lists off. He pulls out a smoke grenade before announcing it to the team.
"Smoke out!" He calls out. The metal canister clanks twice before it gets drowned in a puffing cloud of grey smoke.
"Moving up!" Wilhelm whistles. Izumi follows close behind him with her pistol and a hand on his shoulder. Javier provides light suppressing fire while Wilhelm and Izumi disappear into the smoke screen.
"Final push, let's go!" Javier says to Loukas.
"Copy," he answers.
"Moving up!" Javier whistles, still firing into the store. They pass the dissipating cloud of smoke and find themselves before the shattered store windows; the solid wall rises only to their shins.
"Move forward," Loukas signals Wilhelm with his offhand.
"Remain here. Keep watch," Wilhelm signals to Izumi. She raises a fist to show understanding. Javier glances to Wilhelm and Loukas, who return attention and a clenched hand.
With extreme haste they vault the smashed windows and spread out through the store. Wilhelm takes the far left while Javier takes far right. Loukas stands by the cash registers as a sentry.
"Calling," Javier whistles.
"Answer," Wilhelm returns.
"Calling," Loukas sounds.
"Answer," Javier acknowledges from the back corner.
"I think I saw something," Wilhelm sounds. Loukas points his rifle in Wilhelm's direction, vigilant for anything to pop out.
"Enemy found!" Wilhelm whistles, but is cut off. Someone shoves him into the isle wall where he collapses. Javier runs over while Loukas spots a door in the far back-left corner being thrown open, spitting sunshine into the room.
"They escaped by backdoor!" Loukas calls out. Javier pursues; Izumi rushes in to treat Wilhelm while Loukas joins her.
"She got my fucking liver," he hisses. His hand goes to grab the handle of a combat knife. A majority of the blade is still visible; little of the blade actually pierced the skin.
"Wait wait wait…! Don't pull it out; that'll cause more bleeding," Izumi instructs.
"Just work your magic doc," Wilhelm groans, "Liver wounds aren't fatal right?"
"Liver wounds can be fatal if serious enough. However, you got hit in the kidney, which, by the looks of it, you'll need a medevac," Izumi explains, "Radio Comand Paul."
"CP, this is Gamma 2-2: Enemy target escaped; team lead is in pursuit. We require a medevac; Gamma 2-4 received a stab wound to the kidney," Loukas explains.
"Affirmative; Heli en route for evac of 2-4 and captured opfor. Out."
"CP, this is team lead: Enemy escaped into nearby forest: female, medium height, asian. She wore a uniform similar to ours, potentially a survivor of Gamma 1. Over," Javier beams on comms.
"Copy team lead. She fits the description of Barbara Luangsing, a member of Gamma 1. Medevac will be delayed so that she may be recaptured."
"CP, Gamma 2-4 will die if not evacuated and treated ASAP," Izumi pleads.
"Negative. Luangsing is their ticket back to base. Out."
"Fuck!" Izumi growls. She starts kicking at things on the isles and other object scatter on the floor. Javier bursts back in, rifle shouldered; he returns it to his hip when spotting Izumi having a tantrum.
"Crying doesn't do jackshit-!" Javier protests.
"Find that bitch! Gun her down if you have to, just bring her back so we can get Behrmann off this damned island!" Izumi yells, "I'm not wasting a chance to secure a life!"
Javier is caught off guard by her fervency.
"Roger. Paul, on me; let's go," Javier complies.
"Good hunting," Wilhelm voices before they run back outside.