Evenfall (166 page)

He paused and took a deep breath, running a hand through his hair and causing it to spike out wildly, not looking at all like the superior of a sixty year old man. "

Your expertise in handling terrorists is needed here, Willis. I'm hoping you will utilize your knowledge and skills to help us in this situation and realize that despite your personal feelings regarding Vega and despite the fact that he allows others to provoke him," Carhart sent a pointed look at Sin, who rolled his eyes in response, "it has been proven time and time again that he is capable of completing assignments alone that other men need an entire team to tackle. Not only that, but he is one of the agents that we have on hand who obviously has knowledge about the tunnels and the locations of their entrances and exits. If you can think of someone more fit to infiltrate the tower, please enlighten me."

Willis said nothing for a long moment and straightened his jacket before he finally cleared his throat. "Fine. Then I will at least say that I'd feel more comfortable if a more... controlled agent of rank also went with the tower team."

It seemed that he wanted to add something, so he spoke again before anyone could respond. "When our scouts return, I also highly suggest sending out the remaining men in groups to the areas that have seen the most activity. It is unlikely that this bunker will be attacked and we gain nothing by hoarding the men in here instead of sending them out to engage."

"Agreed," Stephen said, seeming glad to get the argument behind them. "Agent Archer will accompany Agent Vega."

Willis looked slightly mollified by the comment but before he could speak, an insistent beeping erupted from the computers. Thierry jumped as he looked over at the computers in alarm, as if thinking it was an alert that a missile was launched in their direction or something equally dire, but the medic treating him explained quietly, "That's just the proximity alarm."

Most of the people in the room turned toward the screen that was showing movement. One of the monitors displayed what appeared to be the camera's view by the door to the bunker. A group of people were crouched in the area while two men could be seen shooting into the darkness rapidly. Although the men were turned away, the camera apparently included an infrared light because the view was surprisingly clear, detailed, and seemed more like it was looking out at daytime rather than a nearly pitch black scene.

The quality was good enough that even Boyd, despite having met the man
a while
ago and for a relatively brief time, could recognize Archer's broad shoulders and military crew cut. Watching Archer duck back while the other man inched forward, a flash of a grin seen on his face as he looked to the side briefly, Boyd wondered if that was he and Sin had looked like on the monitors, minus the pleased expressions.

"Excellent timing," Stephen said in approval, as if it was a testament to their skills that Archer and the others had known to arrive at that moment. He looked toward an agent who immediately pressed a button, causing the bunker door to slide open up by the group of people. They filed into the bunker's main room shortly after with Archer and the other man ducking in last.

The three generals looked expectantly toward the door; a group of seven agents entered the room with Archer in the lead, his serious eyes darting around the room the second he entered even as he reloaded his gun. His gaze only lingered briefly in assessment on Thierry, Sin and then Boyd, before returning to Stephen. The other man who had been at Archer's side on the camera came in last. He looked to be in his twenties with light skin, brown eyes, and short cropped dark hair. His build was lean and very athletic and he held himself with a casual sort of grace even as he glanced around the room quickly.

"General," Archer greeted, checking that the safety was off his gun and then sliding it back into the holster.

"Report," Stephen said immediately.

"The tower remains inaccessible," Archer said evenly, seeming unaffected by the entire situation. "I counted fifteen of our agents who'd congregated there to try to contact Marshal Connors; eight of them were already dead and I brought the rest with me. Visibility is low. Night goggles don't help; they don't provide sufficient details to distinguish enemies from allies so I had to stop my sniping detail. I found two snipers of theirs and killed them but there may be more. It's unknown why they did not have similar problems I did deciding between enemy and ally. They were targeting the tower so they may have told their people to stay away from the entrances outside. The snipers are probably the reason for the high casualties in that area."

Willis looked at other agent expectantly. "What did you find, Andrew? Were you successful in infiltrating the kill zones or getting an idea on how high the casualty count is among our people?"

The young looking agent, Agent Andrew Torres presumably, frowned slightly and raised his shoulders in a rolling shrug. The name and the relation to General Willis immediately caused something to click in Boyd's brain and he had to wonder if this was the same Andrew who'd had a brief relationship with Ryan. It seemed to fit; Willis' focus on search and rescue missions and this Andrew's almost crest-fallen expression fit perfectly with Ryan's description of the terrorist apprehension unit.

"Unfortunately sir, all three kill zones are currently too hot for me to get in solo. I'm still unsure as to how stable the actual structures are but I viewed a number of corpses around the immediate area, which does not lead me to believe that most people inside were unharmed. Upon trying to move closer I was fired at from multiple directions and had to retreat. I wasn't able to meet up with Agent Archer until just recently, on my way back to base, but since he's managed to pick up more people it's possible that a group of us will be able to split up in teams in order to investigate further."

General Willis looked away, clearly frustrated with the situation. "If three out of five of the main residential halls have been attacked directly, it's no wonder we haven't been able to get much manpower down here. Especially since all three house a high concentration of our field agents." He shook his head. "Did you notice any activity anywhere else aside from those particular sites?"

Andrew nodded, brow furrowing as he thought about it. "There appeared to be snipers stationed around Residential Complex A as if they are trying to keep anyone from getting too close or entering the building and that wasn't even one of the structures that was bombed. And, of course, the shooters that are focusing on this bunker and most likely trying to take out additional reinforcements. I heard a lot of shooting at various points during my run but whenever I got close enough to an area, the fighting had already ceased and the spot was deserted with the exception of a corpse sometimes. Also I'll note that there were several corpses that I suspect were a part of the infiltration team as they were all dressed the same and had black masks."

Carhart's eyebrows shot up and he immediately jumped on the information. "Was there anything distinguishing about them?"

"Negative, sir. The handful I came across were of varying ages and ethnicities."

"Hmm." Carhart looked at Stephen and Willis as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Obviously our people are engaging sporadically with the enemy but it seems that we should focus on the areas that have constant activity. Archer and Vega will lead the tower team, that much is certain. The team who will guard the second entrance to that tunnel, which I believe is in the main Infirmary, will accompany them until they ensure that the area is clear and then remain at their station. So that leaves the other two entrances."

Sin looked up finally. "Well the first entrance to the second tunnel is in the empty lab building on Havit Street but that seemed pretty deserted when we came through. The second entrance is in the basement of Residential Complex A though, which is most likely why the enemy is guarding it."

It was no wonder that the enemy hadn't been dispatched from that area already though-- most of the inhabitants of Complex A were upper echelon agents but the majority were non-combatant types like Jeffrey, who lived on the eleventh floor.

Carhart and Stephen looked at each other as if in silent agreement about something. "We'll need a strong team for that area."

Before the conversation could go anywhere else or they could designate any more team leaders, Andrew blurted out suddenly, "I'd like to volunteer for Residential Complex C, sirs."

Boyd spoke up immediately: "I would as well."

The fact that Ryan lived there wasn't lost on Boyd and that was where he knew he had to be to help him. Even if the bombs hadn't directly impacted his floor, smoke or fire could have reached it. The fact that Andrews had mentioned seeing corpses around the buildings wasn't promising either. Even if Ryan had made it out of his apartment he could have been attacked and even though Boyd had been teaching him some moves, he didn't think Ryan was anywhere near ready to be in combat with these enemies.

Carhart glanced between Andrew and Boyd, not seeming very surprised that either of them seemed in a rush to go to that specific location. However, he seemed torn between ordering them to go with Sin's team and giving the okay, but in the end he nodded. "If the others are fine with that, then I am too."

In the end, nobody had any real objections and the next five minutes were spent designating teams for specific locations. Captain Darrell ended up leading the team that would assault the entrance at Complex A and aside from the teams chosen to take on the tunnel entrance in the lab, to guard the entrance at the Infirmary and the other residential complexes, two snipers were selected to attempt to clean the area around the bunker. There were at least two members of the tech support staff who'd had the foresight to make it to the bunker on their own and they were chosen, along with two agents, to make their way to the location of the diesel backup generators in an effort to fix or re-enable them and get some of the power restored. Everyone was given instructions to pick up more manpower along the way and either bring them along or direct them towards the bunker for further orders.

Once orders were given and plans were created it didn't take long for the teams to assemble and consult on a few last minute issues and to arm themselves in the supply room. Sin and Archer's team was assigned an additional three agents who were introduced as Green, Banks and Williams, while Boyd and Andrew were pairing up with Agents Thomas and Lowe. The teams were ordered to leave in staggered groups so the snipers aiming at the door to the bunker wouldn't have the chance to kill them all in one spot. Captain Darrell's team was the first to depart, disappearing silently out of the room and up the stairs. The team heading toward the lab left a few minutes later.

Agent Thomas moved closer to Boyd and Andrew, asking for specifics of what they were heading into and Andrew ended up moving to the side with him. Eventually Lowe approached as well, so Andrew waved her over, appearing to want to introduce himself and get acquainted with the last-minute team. Although Boyd was interested in what was being said, he wanted to talk to Sin before one of their teams left and he lost the chance.

After a moment, he approached Sin's side and silently tilted his head toward the main door to the room before heading in that direction. Sin followed him out into the hallway where they had some sense of privacy away from the background murmur of several conversations occurring at once. They stood for a moment and just looked at each other, noting how weary the other looked after a long night of running and fighting, something that obviously wasn't over yet. Blood splatters still stained Sin's clothing and although he most likely looked as impervious as ever to the others, Boyd could tell that he was tired mentally if not physically.

"Hey," Boyd said somewhat pensively and glanced at the door before searching Sin's expression and deciding to get straight to the point. "I know you'll have a lot on your mind, but if the enemy is targeting the tower I can only imagine they're going for the administration. My mother is really just a civilian; I doubt she's ever had real combat training. She wouldn't stand a chance against an attack and... I don't want her to die." He hesitated then asked, "Can you go help her? I'd go myself, but Ryan..."

Sin stared down at him silently at first, his eyes an almost startling contrast to the darkness of the room and the pitch black that Boyd knew awaited them outside. But then he raised one shoulder almost casually and readjusted the strap to the shotgun holster which lay across his chest.

"I will if she'll let me. You know how she is."

"Yes, I do," Boyd said mildly, looking away to search the shadows as if he would find an answer there as to how to deal with his mother. "But if she's really in trouble I hope she will accept help. If not, there's nothing we can do about it." Despite the fact that she had never been a particularly loving woman, she was still his mother, his only living family, and he had to admit that the last few times he'd seen her she had actually seemed to be trying to help in her own way.

He ran a hand tiredly through his hair, noting now that he had a brief moment of respite just how much his jaw hurt and how annoying the blood was dried on the side of his face and neck. "Even so, thank you."

Sin shrugged again, nodding slightly and although it seemed like he wanted to say more, his eyes skipped briefly to the door and he stopped. His team was assembled, armed and heading past them and up the long staircase that led to the main door. He and Archer made eye contact briefly but the other man didn't so much as say anything to rush him, although the look on his face made it clear that they needed to be moving out. Sin didn't think the man was particularly fond of him but at the same time, as long as he was technically the team leader, Archer didn't seem in a rush to step out of line either.