The piercing and alarming sound of gunfire reverberated intensely throughout the stillness of the night, causing a sense of unease and apprehension to settle upon the surrounding area. The sounds of demonic pain and anger merge with the noise of weapons being fired. I expressed gratitude to the Colonel for discovering the cache of ammunition and weapons. Those items were the only obstacle preventing those malicious fiends from attacking any closer. It had already been an hour, which seemed like too long for this type of firefight. Every monstrous creature for miles would converge on our position, and they were. The seemingly infinite multitude of blazing demons materialized before me, appearing to stretch on without any discernible limit. The battle became more intense with the addition of crazed individuals who joined forces with the hell fiends. Unfortunately, the situation was exacerbated by the presence of what appeared to be zombies. People that were clearly no longer living attacked with animalistic-like prowess.
My communication system came to life once more, emitting a faint crackling sound. "Rooftop overwatch! Get down to the Humvees! We're bugging out!" Colonel Black ordered.
I readily accepted the offer without hesitation, and I promptly rose from my position. I swiftly navigated towards the rooftop access, accompanied by the close proximity of Adams and Armstrong. As we proceeded toward the ground level, we came across the rest of our squad valiantly holding off more assailants. I witnessed the Colonel's serious demeanor as he threw multiple grenades down the corroded area while we were passing by. A few moments later, the explosion blew out the windows of the building. Taking the wheel, I was joined by the Colonel on the passenger side.
"Burn rubber and get us the hell out of here, Giannetti!" the Colonel yelled, mowing down any enemy too close for comfort.
I threw the rig into drive and gunned it behind the last of the convoy. "Just like back in the Army," I mumbled as I swiveled around a destroyed car.
"How can people not see the destruction in the streets?" Erica asked from the backseat.
As the gunner above us fired, her voice was almost drowned out. I sped behind the heavy truck in front, I had no idea who he or she was, but they cleared both sides of the road.
"Alright, Lawson, ease down on the fifty cal. The street looks clear," Colonel Black said, "Collin, what's our next objective?" he added.
"Upper East Side, there's a VIP that should still be there," Collins said.
Both of the new individuals appeared to be women with a military background, based on their tone of voice. As I glanced at my heads-up display, a location suddenly appeared. Without hesitation, I made the next turn, leaving the convoy to head toward our next objective.
"The target is Doctor Sofia Fry and her younger sisters Ellie and Summer Fry. All three are psychic, with Doctor Fry having a doctrine in biology and demonology," Erica explained.
"They're in their safe room in the apartment. Our orders are to extract them and get them to Bellevue," Collins explained.
"Copy that! Check your weapons. We'll be going in hot," Colonel Black stated.
"What do you mean?" Sano asked.
"The safe house has been under siege since earlier last night," Collins revealed.
"Like I said earlier. This is an invasion. When we get onsite, be prepared for heavy resistance," the Colonel stated.
"Let me guess, new, more dangerous monsters and demons?" I countered.
"You better believe it. I'm not going to lie to you. There's no way to know what we are walking into. I know these fiends want the Fry family dead and in the ground. That's enough motive for me to get them out of there," the Colonel stated.
"Same here; if they want them, then they must be important in some manner," I countered.
"I bet it has something to do with them being a family of psychics. Doctor Fry has knowledge about demons that might also contribute," Sano said.
"You hit the nail right on the head. At least that's what the higher-ups and scientists think," Colonel Black said.
"Who do we work for anyway?" Collins asked as she ducked down.
"Keep your gun manned, Collins. There's no actual name for our department. It's more a collection of defunct or retired programs that deal with paranormal and supernatural situations. All I can tell you is about sixty years ago, something was found in the Middle East. Something that we weren't supposed to ever find. That discovery gave us a chance," the Colonel said. "Testing was done during the war or terror in the region. That's all I know for sure," he added.
"Does it have something to do with the Blue Spectors that Captain Cook told us about?" Sano questioned.
"Yeah, that's what I was told before this mission. The Hunt brothers and their unit were created for this type of warfare," Colonel Black revealed. "It's why I'm here. He added to make sure they don't die and collect all assets, VIPs, or any information that will aid in this war," he added.
That was a lot to let sink in. Cook was right, and One Police Plaza knew about it. That was why they were put on those cases. It also made sense why the entire command structure was literally taken out. We didn't even have a chance to prevent this. New York wasn't alone in this either. This really was an invasion unlike anything humanity had seen, and half of us wouldn't even be aware it was happening.
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Madison sprang into action to assist the injured man and the other nurses. Rory and the two nurses provided assistance to the other patients whose conditions were not life-threatening. They checked their vital signs, gave them medication, and ensured they were comfortable. They also talked to the patients and their families for support and reassurance. The nurses were very busy, but they were happy to be able to help the patients. They knew that their work was making a difference in the lives of the patients and their families. I discovered the two nurses were Tiffany Cox and Karla Noel. They worked at a local clinic in the area. Father Sanchez went out of his way to bless every part of the apartment building. His presence eased everyone one's feelings regardless of their faith.
I texted Rachael to let her know I had things under control for now and that her family was safe. I also told her that I would keep her updated on the situation and that I would call her as soon as I had more information. I knew she was worried about her family, so I wanted to reassure her that they were safe and that I was doing everything I could to help. The text returned with a smiley face and three hearts, which were Rachel's typical emojis. The smiley face represented her happiness to hear from the person, while the three hearts represented her love for them. Rachel was a very expressive person, and she loved using emojis to convey her emotions. She felt emojis were a fun and easy way to communicate, and she always used them to brighten her messages. The young detective was definitely trying to keep her spirits up and mine. That was Detective Rachael Kyle for you. She was an eternal optimist, always able to find the silver lining in any situation, no matter how bleak. I was relieved to hear that, and I made up my mind to protect her family and her. I had faith that she would defend my ex-wife, Lorelei.
Thomas and Bob completed the task of securing the ground, second, and third floors. Nothing was getting inside this building without us knowing. The floors in between were still being cleared, which meant that the building was not yet entirely safe. That would take more time. Blossom and Nathan had taken it upon themselves to do the dangerous work of eliminating all threats inside the apartment building.
"You better get some rest while you can. There's no telling what will come up tonight. There is still plenty of nighttime left to survive." Bob said.
"I hear you, and you should too," I countered.
"Sure thing, buddy," Bob said, patting me on the back.
Patrica and Sophia were kind enough to offer us the living room for the night, even though they had very little space themselves. They made up a comfortable bed for us on the floor and even lent us some blankets and pillows. We were very grateful for their hospitality and would be comfortable for the night. I was hesitant to go to sleep at a time like this, but I knew it would be unwise to become sleep deprived. None of us had slept since early morning. We were all exhausted and running on fumes. Our eyes were bloodshot, and our heads were pounding. We had been working non-stop for hours, and it was starting to take its toll. We knew all too well that we needed to get some sleep soon, but we also knew that we could only stop once the job was done.
That's what Bob, Thomas, and I were trained for. We were determined to finish what we had started, even if it meant staying up all night. That being said, rest was just as important as ensuring the safety of everyone inside the building. They needed all of us in working order. I moved into the cottage that the Kyle women had prepared for us. Before long, I fell into a deep slumber.