Chapter Text
ONE WEEK LATER
It was 5:00 AM when the team started gathering in front of the main exit from Haven, everyone obviously agitated and eager to finally get going. An entire week of preparation should have been enough, but naturally there was still some stress that made them all restless. Dragov was already in full gear, a set of modified armor Anna built for him using old shield parts turning out to be very comfortable as soon as he put it on. She didn’t have enough time to work on all their sets of gear, but with Theo’s help they still managed to make a few tweaks here and there. Barkworth’s knee guards were reinforced with a few additional alloys to make sure that his previous knee injury won’t be too much of a bother. Marta and Joaquin were equipped with reinforced chest plates fitted with shock-absorbing material should they have to engage in close combat. As for Kelso, Anna prepared a special backpack attachment that would easily work as a portable EMP. As the Black Tusk relied heavily on technology, anything including EMP charges would have proven to be very effective. Sadly, it worked both ways, so they needed to make sure that their tech would not be affected as well.
The weather was surprisingly good that day, clear sky and soft wind blows giving them hope that it won’t be too tedious to walk all the way to the UN building. They still had some time before the entire team assembled, so Dragov decided to go for a cigarette. As soon as he lit one up and took a drag Anna exited the building, Theo right next to her. They approached the man as soon as they saw him.
“Looking good, Cupcake,” Dragov smiled, noticing how unusual it was to see Anna in full gear. “This set not too heavy for you?”
“Very funny,” she answered, adjusting her backpack. “I used to carry a lot more back in the day. This is going to be a piece of cake.”
Dragov’s eyes darted towards Theo, who seemed to be very distraught. His face looked like he didn’t sleep much that night. Dragov wasn’t surprised though. It must have been hard on him too.
Anna turned towards Theo and took one of her gloves off, reaching out to place her hand on his cheek. Theo leaned into the touch and closed his eyes, sighing deeply.
“Please come back to me in one piece,” he said, his voice so quiet Dragov barely heard the words. “Please.”
“I will,” Anna answered and leaned in a little more, resting her forehead against his. “I’m going to be fine. You’ll see. Now go and get some sleep.”
“There’s no way I’m going to fall asleep now,” Theo chuckled, nuzzling Anna’s nose with his. “But I can promise I’m going to try.”
“Good. I’ll take whatever I can get.”
Theo wrapped her in an embrace after that and went for her lips in a heated kiss, one that almost made Dragov feel like he should have given them a moment of privacy. As soon as Theo pulled away from her however he squeezed her hand gently and turned around, nodding towards Dragov and leaving to go back to Haven. He didn’t look back, but Anna’s gaze was focused on the entrance long after he was gone.
“You okay?” Dragov asked after a moment, trying to break the uncomfortable silence.
“No,” she answered, putting the glove back on and making sure that her assault rifle was securely attached to her backpack. She also had a rocket launcher fitted on the right, so the other weapons she carried were relatively light. "But I'm going to be fine."
“Are we all here?” Joaquin suddenly approached the group, looking around. Marta was sitting on a nearby bench, busy with a small piece of paper in her hand that Dragov couldn’t identify. Barkworth and Kelso were there as well, talking to each other next to a fallen pillar, but the conversation stopped as soon as they noticed Joaquin approaching. “Well, I guess it’s time to go then, huh?”
Dragov nodded and reached towards his backpack for one last equipment check.
There was no use to drag this out longer than necessary.
“Let’s do a quick strategy recap, shall we?” Kelso and the rest of the team moved closer, making sure that everybody could hear what she was saying. “We split into two teams. Team Alpha, which is me, Thorne, Barkworth and Serrano is going to go for the Black Tusk forces stationed in the UN building. We’re going to go in hard and make sure that we sweep as much as possible. Team Bravo, Clarke and Dragov, is going to go for the server and control rooms to get the data and to turn off all Black Tusk defences they can get. And you’re going to have to be opening the door for us most of the way. So make sure you’re in position before we reach the fourth floor. We’re going to need that support if we want to clear the building. And if we want to get out alive.”
“Yes ma’am,” Barkworth said first but the team followed in unison. Anna and Dragov nodded in acknowledgement. Their role in this was supposedly much less complex than the Alpha Team, but required much better coordination. Hopefully their presence in the building was going to create enough ruckus that they would be allowed to work in peace. Well, at least mostly in peace. Unless the Black Tusk shut the servers off and the team is left with nothing. Anna told Dragov that it was her biggest worry - if they notice her rummaging through the system, they might cut them off and that would be the end. But she knew how to work fast and she knew what to go for. So he was simply going to put faith in her skills.
After the final equipment check and some additional comments on the plan, the Peacekeepers opened the gate and let both teams out to set out on the mission.
It was going to be a hell of a long day.
***
An entrance to the underground parking lot had to be breached using an explosive - Kelso selected a relatively safe spot on one of the walls and placed the explosives, gesturing at the team to move away from the area. As soon as everyone found a safe spot she triggered the explosion, concrete and dust sent flying with a bang that was surprisingly quiet.
“We know this was their least checked location because of that wall,” Kelso was on the comms as they were slowly making their way inside, checking every single corner for possible enemies. “But we can’t know how much time we have. We need to separate before they see us together.”
“Yes ma’am,” Dragov checked his shield and his shotgun, gesturing at Anna to follow him. “We have to go left anyway. There’s a possible server room here in the basement.”
“Good luck, Team Bravo,” Kelso used a flashlight to light the way in front of them, turning it off a moment later. “We’ll be on the comms at all times. Let us know when you get the data and when you’re able to disable their defence systems. We’ll be waiting for you to open the door.”
Anna and Dragov nodded and turned left, taking a route that would lead them to a nearby location that has already been used as a communication hub by the Last Man Battalion while they were stationed there. It might have been a year ago, but it would be stupid to discard a working infrastructure and to build something new from scratch. Nobody had that much time and resources, even the Black Tusk. So it had to be one of the three.
“I’m picking up a conversation,” Anna opened a communication channel less than two minutes after their separation from the group. “Agent Kelso, I think you’ll want to hear this.”
Kelso stopped together with Team Alpha, hiding behind a few old cars just in case. Completely still behind a huge pick-up truck Alani heard some static first, but it turned into three very distinct voices soon enough.
“We have to make sure we get them for good,” there was no way not to recognize the first voice, obviously belonging to Faye Lau. “Rhodes is smart, so we have to be way smarter. How’s the delivery going?”
“Fast enough, boss,” this time the voice belonged to someone impossible to identify. “We should have three more units before the end of the week.”
“Perfect. You think we’ll be able to use them soon?”
“Don’t see why not,” a third person joined the conversation, a man, his voice also unfamiliar. “But we have to be smart about this too. And we have to work on our jamming devices. We don’t want a repeat of what happened two weeks ago, do we?”
Kelso sighed. They were obviously talking about their assault on Haven.
“No we don’t,” Faye Lau answered, anger present in her voice. “We won’t fail for the second time. Both SHD and Nova are going down and I don’t care how much firepower we have to use to do it. Kestrel, can you make sure that we’re on track with our supplies?”
“Yes boss,” the man whom Lau just called Kestrel exited the channel, leaving just the two of them.
“Magnus,” she spoke a moment later. “Make sure we don’t run into any surprises.”
“Yes ma’am.”
The channel closed after that and Kelso immediately opened another one that would allow her to talk to Rhodes together with the rest of the team.
“Did you hear that?” she asked, still crouching beneath the pick-up truck.
“I did,” there were no emotions in Rhodes’ voice. “I’m hoping it means that Faye Lau is there?”
“Yes,” Anna was fast to answer, “We have her signature moving around the building. I can’t confirm which floor she’s on though. ANNA’s readings are inconclusive.”
“And we believe that Kestrel and Magnus, or whatever they’re called, are her most trusted people here. So we have to go after them as well.”
“I’ll see what we can find,” Rhodes’ voice was immediately accompanied by a sound of fingers clacking on a keyboard. “We’ll get back to you. But if you engage Lau… make sure she won't cause us any more problems.”
“Thanks. We will. Over and out.”
By the time Kelso and Team Alpha managed to move closer to the basement parking lot exit that would ultimately lead them towards the actual UN building, they hadn't encountered a single Black Tusk operative and it seemed a little suspicious. Anna warned them about possible traps and photocells that could alert the BTSU to their presence and Kelso was ready to use her EMP charge at all times, but surprisingly enough there was no need for that.
“I don’t like this,” Joaquin commented as they were making their way outside, towards the entrance to the building. “I remember how fortified the Last Man Battalion was when we entered through here. Even the parking lot was a battleground.”
“Maybe they’re not expecting us,” Kelso hid behind a crate for a second and decided to talk to Anna. “Clarke, status?”
“We’re almost in the building,” Anna’s voice came through a little distorted; they must have been a lot farther. “Unfortunately, the first location was a dead end. No equipment of any kind. We’re opening the door to the second spot as we speak.”
“Good. Keep us posted,” Kelso stood up again and took a careful look around, making sure that they were safe to leave. “Alright, team. Let’s go.”
She quickly ran towards the door, motioning at the rest of the team to follow her. As soon as they were by the door Marta picked the lock and opened it, letting them all inside into a still majestic but very rusty lobby.
“It must have been beautiful here once,” Marta commented, looking around the hall.
“It still is,” Joaquin answered, making sure that his assault rifle was ready just in case. “Who knows. Maybe we’ll be able to move in here at some point.”
Kelso wanted to answer with something similarly hopeful, even though she didn’t really share the sentiment. She didn’t have enough time though - the shot that came right after Joaquin spoke almost grazed her knee.
“Get to cover!” She managed to shout before she instinctively ducked to her left, pulling Marris together with her.
Looks like the enemy finally decided to send a welcome party.
***
Anna and Dragov were making their way through a dark corridor, their path illuminated only by a flashlight that Anna used very carefully. They needed to make sure that it was safe to pass before they moved forward, making Dragov a little on edge.
“Why can’t we just rush past these?” he said to her, motioning towards the sets of doors on their left and right.
“Do you really want to alert the Black Tusk to our presence, BFG?” Anna quipped and busied herself with the Jammer Pulse attached to her shoulder. Dragov noticed her checking it every once in a while, as if she was making sure that it was still there.
“I’m pretty sure they already know we’re here,” he answered, quickly checking his shotgun. He noticed that going through a routine of checking his weapon actually calmed him down. “And we don’t really have a lot of time.”
“I know,” was it his imagination or was Anna getting impatient? “But we’re almost at the third location. It has to be the one we’re looking for. There’s no other place they could have used as a server room… unless of course they decided to build a completely new infrastructure, but I don’t think they had this much time.”
Dragov nodded and moved a few steps forward again, making sure not to make too much noise on the creaking floor. They were currently walking through what once could have been offices or conference rooms; most of the doors were closed, but the open ones usually led into rooms that were completely stripped of anything useful. It looked like someone left in a hurry and whoever came in there afterwards and went through the stuff that had been left behind did it in a hurry as well. There was no living soul on the entire floor, which was both good and a little worrying. Definitely very creepy.
Dragov suddenly heard a creak that definitely didn’t come from underneath his boots. Or Anna’s. He motioned towards her and forced her into a halt. She stopped immediately, a questioning look on her face, but didn’t say a word. Which was good, because he really had to listen.
The creak came again, this time seemingly louder, a little closer. He couldn’t see any farther than soft light seeping in through an open window in a nearby room would have allowed. So he stood there, waiting. Listening. His nerves felt like they were on fire, the overwhelming silence ringing in his ears. He hated it, hated feeling suspended. But he had to focus and he had to focus hard .
He was ready for the blow when it came towards him, an adversary jumping outside from one of the rooms and trying to go for his head. He threw his shield to the ground and caught the attacker’s wrist, twisting it and immediately hearing a grunt of pain.
“Jammer!” he screamed, but Anna was faster and already set off the charge. The Jammer Pulse was more important for the comms though than it was for any types of skills. They couldn’t have risked anyone learning about their presence in the corridor. The other team was the task force. They were here for the servers and they needed to stay low.
Anna forced one of the doors open and hid behind it, not gaining much protection from gunshots but creating enough tactical advantage that she managed to launch a striker drone. She heard Dragov’s grunt but didn’t see him; he was obviously still wrestling with the assailant, so she decided to step in as well. Readying her assault rifle that she had to temporarily forsake in order to launch the drone, she made sure that it was loaded and peeked from behind the door. A bullet cut through the air on the other side of the wall, but didn’t even come close to hurting her. So she made sure to aim and support the drone in any way she could.
Dragov brought the assailant to the ground and twisted their arm, but it wasn’t enough to disarm or discourage them. They immediately went for a pistol that shot towards Anna but missed by a lot, Dragov trying to go for the arm holding the weapon in order to disarm the attacker. Unfortunately they used his own body weight against him and made him fall forward, letting go of their arm and wriggling free from his grasp. Dragov reached for his shotgun, but before he managed to aim he felt a strong kick to his left shin that made him fall to his knees.
The drone sent a swarm of bullets flying towards the assailant and that gave Anna a moment to move and Dragov a moment to reach for his shield again. Unfortunately their adversary used this opportunity to jump to the front and hide behind an old metal cart that was now laying on the floor on its side. It wasn’t too big, but unfortunately big enough to serve as a cover.
“Kelso, come in,” Anna opened the comms, hiding behind Dragov and his shield. “We have encountered a Hunter. I repeat, we have encountered a Hunter.”
“What?!” Kelso seemed to be surprised on the other side, but Dragov wasn’t that shocked to hear bullets flying on the other end. “A Hunter? Are you sure?”
“Yes,” Anna was fast to answer but honestly, Dragov was surprised as well; how did she know that it was a Hunter? “The equipment is a match. They tried to launch a Jammer but I countered it. We jammed their communications, but I don’t think we have a lot of time until somebody knows we are here. We have to take them down.”
Dragov had to take his focus away from Anna’s voice for a while as the Hunter in question threw a shrapnel grenade towards them. He managed to kick it back just in time, unfortunately sending it much farther than the Hunter was hiding. He checked the shield once again to make sure that Anna was also protected behind him. Peeking over his left shoulder he noticed her rummaging through her pocket. She was also talking to Kelso about something else, but he was so focused he couldn’t make out all of the words.
He started moving forward, Anna two steps behind him, trying to get closer to the Hunter. He knew how dangerous the Hunters were and how hard it was for their people to fight them. He wasn’t going to back away though. There was just one of them and they had to power through. There was no other option.
He reached for his shotgun and as soon as the Hunter managed to shoot the drone down he aimed and took a shot, more as a warning than anything else - there was no way to get the Hunter from that angle. But he was getting closer and he needed to keep the fucker in one spot. Sadly, he had no idea that the Hunter would jump .
The jump quickly placed the Hunter between him and Anna, with not enough time to load his shotgun again. Fuck, was that what the fucker was actually waiting for? It all happened in what felt like a split of a second - the Hunter reaching for an axe, Anna readying her gun. He had to act fast, so he went for the Hunter’s back - hitting them with his shield so hard it sent them flying forward, the axe still in their hand, but no way to keep balance.
There was not enough space between them to go for a shot so Anna used this opportunity to kick the Hunter in the stomach; the grunt that left their mouth was one definitely laced with pain, but it was still not enough to overpower them completely. Falling down the Hunter caught Anna’s leg and brought her down with them, twisting a little and using the force to bring themself back up. The kick that followed this move connected with Anna’s shin so hard Dragov heard a bone break and it almost made his heart skip a beat. Anna screamed with pain and he knew he had to be fast about what he was going to do next. So he threw away the shotgun and used the shield for a powerful blow that connected with the Hunter’s back and sent them flying forward, away from Anna, visibly stunned with the force he put into the push as part of the shield connected with their head. It might not have been enough to bring them down, but Dragov got what he was hoping for. An advantage.
He threw the shield to the ground and pulled at the Hunter’s jacket to bring them in for close combat. That was what he was always good at.
He managed to duck one of the attacks but not the other; an axe swing connected with his hip and he felt the blade push through his skin, sending a jolt of pain down his leg. But there were two sides to every situation like this; the Hunter was still for just enough time to allow him to go for their chest.
He hit hard, with all the force he had, sending the Hunter backwards with a sharp intake of breath. Unfortunately as soon as the blade was pulled out the pain got even worse, shooting through his stomach as well. He tried really hard to concentrate on something else though; he had to be fast and he had to be effective. So he went for the only option he really had.
He caught onto the Hunter’s arm, the one holding the axe, and twisted it all the way he could, going for the legs at the same time. He didn’t feel like he would be able to lift the right one because of the pain, so he used the left and went for a strong kick that allowed him to send the Hunter in the other direction, the Hunter’s arm popping out of its socket. He heard a scream of pain and… wait, was this Hunter a woman?
He didn’t have time to think as the Hunter was still trying to overpower him, but luckily Anna came to help. She was sitting on the floor - he was trying really hard not to look at her leg, he didn’t want to see, they will have time to take care of this afterwards - but she took out her sidearm and went for any unarmored part of the attacker’s body she could aim for - it just happened to be a kneecap.
The Hunter fell to the ground with another scream of pain, but Dragov knew that this could have been far from over. So while he held her down, Anna tried to go for the other kneecap, but ultimately settled for a shoulder because of too much wriggling.
“Fuck!” Came a loud scream that Dragov could have sworn sounded familiar. What the fuck was going on here? Using his leg to press down on the Hunter’s chest, he reached upwards and went for her mask. He yanked it off with one fluid motion and he almost forgot to catch his breath because of what he saw.
Under the mask was no other than Skye Wilkins, an Agent they thought to be dead just like Blaze Meyer.
Another moment of hesitation unfortunately cost him another blow with an axe that he was not ready for; Skye immediately switched the axe between her hands and went for his shoulder wedging the blade deep, right next to the strap of his chest plate. The pain was overwhelming and sharp, making him curse out loud. He willed every particle in his body to move, catching Skye’s wrist and holding it in place. Unfortunately she was still able to yank the axe away, sending a flood of excruciating pain down his arm and up his neck.
He heard another gunshot and heard another scream that definitely came from the Hunter; this time the bullet went through her arm. Anna was obviously trying to incapacitate her, not kill her. He didn’t have that much mercy though. She was going down, even if he had to do it with just one hand.
He placed his left hand on her neck and pressed hard, making her choke immediately. He knew exactly what spot to go for and there was no hesitation in his move - he crushed her windpipe with one strong push, effectively making her go limp and boneless beneath his knee.
There was a moment of silence, one that Dragov felt like lasted at least an hour. Anna was looking at him with eyes wide open, a grimace of pain mixed with shock. And he couldn’t move. He couldn’t have moved a fucking finger. His hip was bleeding, his shoulder was bleeding. And it hurt like hell.
“Anna to Kelso,” Anna’s voice felt like something that came from far away, from another dimension or another world. The pain in her voice made him feel weak in the knees. “We… We confirmed the Hunter’s identity. It was Skye Wilkins.” Static. Silence. “Kelso, are you there?”
“Affirmative,” he couldn’t have deciphered the emotions in Kelso’s voice even if he tried. “You okay?”
“No,” Anna answered fast and a grimace of pain deformed her face again, sweat glistening on her forehead. “My leg is broken. Dragov took two axe blows. We have to find a way to keep moving. She… we disabled her comms. They don’t know what happened. Yet.”
“Okay,” Kelso’s voice was shaky, but Dragov couldn’t tell if it was because of what she just heard or because of the connection. “Keep moving and keep us posted.”
“How bad is your leg?” Joaquin jumped into the conversation, every word he said muffled by the sound of gunshots.
“Pretty bad. I’d give it a 7 out of 10. Hurts like hell and I think it’s an open fracture.”
“Keep it secure. I’ll take care of it when we get to you. And Dragov?”
“Bleeding. Don’t know yet.”
“Talk to me if you need me.”
“Okay.”
Anna tried standing up but the pain in her leg was excruciating; and yes, it was an open fracture, she could see the bone straining against the fabric of her trousers. She cursed loudly and reached for the rope she had in her pocket, hoping to be able to secure her leg with something that would keep it still; Dragov was with her in seconds, yanking the rope away from her and using a panel from Wilkins’ chest plate to secure Anna’s leg.
“It’s going to hurt,” he said, holding her leg just below the knee and over her ankle, “but I have to secure this before we move.”
He felt his head swimming because of the pain, but focusing on Anna was a very welcome distraction from his own injuries. She nodded and he placed the panel behind her calf, using the rope to attach it to her leg. He could see that she was in a lot of pain; it made him more preoccupied than his actual injuries.
“You’re bleeding,” she said, her voice really quiet. “How… bad is it?”
“Hurts like fuck,” he spat, standing up with a groan and pain shooting through his entire body again. “But we have to go. Come on.”
He reached out for her and she took his hand, propping herself up and standing on her left leg.
“Thanks,” she said, her voice very weak but also determined. “We need to get to the next corridor. Door 506. Should be less than fifty meters away.”
“Alright. Let’s go.”
He tried to support Anna with a hand around her waist, but the pain was almost unbearable, especially in his hip, but he had to go through with it. She couldn’t walk on her own, so it was the least he could have done.
The fifty meters they had to traverse felt like the longest distance he had to walk in his entire life. The room however was definitely the place they were looking for; it had a digital lock that Anna had to crack in order to open it. As soon as they made their way inside, he slumped to the ground right next to one of the server shelves. Anna propped herself up next to the door, closing it behind them and fumbling with the lock for a while.
“Serrano, this is Clarke,” it felt like her voice was coming from far away; Dragov had to close his eyes because the entire room was swimming. “We’re in. We found the server room. The new lock combination is 4-8-15-16-23-42. I’m going… to get to work.”
“Understood. Are you okay?”
“We’ll be fine. Just get here as soon as you can. I’ll be disabling the systems soon.”
She used the shelves to move around the room and she was suddenly standing over Dragov, looking at him with a very conflicted look on her face.
“Get to work,” he said, gritting his teeth with pain. “I’ll be fine.”
“You have to put pressure on those wounds. And we have to clean them.”
“I know.”
He did know. Sadly, there was no way he would have been able to do it.
Anna leaned against one of the shelves, moving around a little and taking her backpack off. She took out two bottles of water and handed them over to Dragov.
“Clean the wounds. I’ll be with you in two…”
She didn’t manage to finish because a violent shudder went through her body, making her throw up on the floor; she only managed to turn away enough that she wouldn’t stain his boots. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and groaned.
“Cupcake, you okay?” Now Dragov was genuinely worried. She must have really been in a lot of pain.
“Fuck no,” she spat, turning around to reach for one of the shelves. Dragov could see it now; layers upon layers of chests, computers and screens, with a control panel in the very front. Anna moved towards it and took something out of her backpack, leaning against the control panel and going for the keyboard.
“Hey Theo,” he heard her speak into her mouthpiece. “Talk to me. Anything. I need you to pick up the data I send you. Yes, I’m okay. Just in a lot of pain. No, please. Just keep talking. I need you to focus.”
He couldn’t hear what Theo was saying as she set up a private connection, her back now turned towards him as she was furiously typing on the keyboard, grunting from time to time. She was going to be okay and that was all that mattered. A little pain has never killed anyone, right? It was just a broken bone. He’d seen worse. He didn’t have to worry.
At least he hoped so.
***
“Kelso! Kelso? You okay?”
No. She wasn’t okay. She was sitting behind a panel, trying to catch her breath. Wilkins? Wilkins was a Hunter ? She expected a lot, but she didn’t expect that . Did it mean that she was the one who killed Meyer? Was it the reason why he let his guard down? Fuck, it all made sense now. Everything was coming together and it made her feel sick to her stomach. Why didn’t she see this coming? Why didn’t she predict what could have happened?
No. She will have time to process it later. She needed to snap out of it and focus on what she had to do. They still had a mission. The Black Tusk forces were onto them and pinned them in one of the atriums, going at them from all sides. It was almost impossible to find cover among the rubble. She was really hoping that Anna would be able to turn the defences off soon. They could really use some help with the turrets and Warhounds.
“I’m fine,” she finally answered Serrano, going for her sniper rifle. “Sorry. Let’s get those fuckers.”
The surroundings were tough but they had to manage; she used her rifle to go for the farthest operatives, downing them one by one. Barkworth and Thorne were a little to the front, using their Stinger Hives and drones to weaken their enemies. She also noticed a set of Seeker Mines going off to her left; Serrano wasn’t idle while he was waiting for her response. They needed to get through this and they needed to be fast. Especially if they had an opportunity to finally get Faye Lau.
The Black Tusk knew that they infiltrated their base, but they had no idea of knowing that a second team went for the servers. She was just hoping that they manage to buy them as much time as necessary. She had faith in Anna’s abilities. She was just hoping that her injuries won’t be slowing her down.
They made their way to the fourth floor, managing to sneak past the turrets and to take down the Warhounds. She had no idea how much time had passed, but it couldn’t have been a lot. They secured their positions in front of the stairs and waited. The enemies were not letting them power through easily.
“Clarke to Kelso,” she heard Anna in her headpiece and honestly, her voice felt so soothing in that moment. “I managed to disable the defences. You should have it a lot easier now.”
“Did you get the data?”
“Yes. And you have no idea what we found here. Plans, schematics… I was able to get into their central database before they shut me out. I have supply routes, weapon schematics and…” she paused for a while and Kelso heard something that sounded a lot like someone vomiting. “Sorry. We have some documents we’ll have to decipher but we’ll do it in the base. I didn’t get all of it, unfortunately, but we should… we should have a lot to give us an advantage.”
“Are you okay?”
“No, but Dragov is worse. Get ready for the door. I’ll open all of them at once and cut their access. I have to take care of him afterwards. Make sure you get here as soon as possible. He needs your help.”
“Understood. Can we…”
“Just get here fast. Please. We are…”
She suddenly heard a loud crack of static and Anna’s voice was gone, drowned out by white noise that died down soon after too.
Fuck. They cut their comms.
She made her way towards Serrano, trying to avoid the bullets flying in their direction. Her heart was pounding so loud that she could hear it in her ears.
“Serrano,” she shouted, squeezing in behind cover next to him. “They cut our comms. We need to move fast.”
“I know,” he answered, peeking from behind his cover and throwing another set of Seeker Mines towards a group of Black Tusk operatives. “From what I heard, Anna and Dragov could use our help. Maybe I could get to them fast.”
“No,” Kelso was fast to answer, readying her sniper rifle again. “We need you here. If we want to do this, we have to stay together.”
Serrano nodded, but she could see that he wasn’t thrilled with the prospect. It didn’t matter in the slightest though. She needed him here and nobody else was coming for Anna and Dragov; she locked the door from the inside and changed the combination. They can try, but it would most likely all be in vain. They needed to move forward and try to get Faye Lau. The moment they learned that she was here their objective had changed.
As if on cue, the door they were talking about opened behind the Black Tusk forces, catching them a little off guard. Team Alpha used this opportunity to take care of the remaining soldiers, Kelso downing most of them with her sniper rifle. Anna kept her word. She opened the door. All they had to do now was keep moving. With or without comms, they knew what they had to do.
It wasn’t going to be easy, but then again, it never was.
Barkworth and Thorne were going in first, Kelso and Serrano following behind them. They made their way up the stairs and towards an elevator shaft, using the lines there to zip upwards and skip a few floors. As soon as they exited the shaft, a few additional hostiles were waiting for them; nothing they wouldn’t have been able to overcome though. They approached a big open space, something that most likely used to be a conference room. Even from far away they could see Faye Lau standing by a huge oval table, one resembling those they saw in presidential quarters of the White House; there were papers scattered everywhere, a few laptops and a huge screen showing something that looked like a map. She wasn’t going to get away. Kelso was going to set things straight.
“Don’t let her run,” she shouted towards the team, motioning with her hand. “If possible, take her alive.”
The team nodded and Marta immediately ducked behind one of the shelves, readying her flamethrower to make sure that she cuts off any escape routes Lau might have tried to go for.
“Kelso!” Lau shouted, hiding behind the table and obviously going for her weapon as well. “There’s no way you can win this. Give up and maybe I’ll let your people go.”
“You never let any of my people go,” Kelso answered and ducked down, going for her sidearm and shooting underneath the table. A few Black Tusk operatives were closing in on her, but Serrano threw another set of Seeker Mines towards them and effectively set off a few explosions that sent the men flying in seconds. Kelso took a leap over the table towards Lau, catching her ankle at the last moment and bringing the woman to the ground.
“You think you can win, Kelso?” Lau was trying to distract Alani but she wasn’t having any of it, effectively disarming the woman and headbutting her nose as soon as the assault rifle fell to the floor.
“Yes, I do,” Alani kicked Lau’s stomach with her knee and brought the woman upwards with her, trying to go for her jaw with an uppercut blow but Lau was faster and deflected the hit. “And you’re definitely going down together with your people.”
They wrestled with each other for a while, Lau desperate to go for Kelso’s stomach and neck while the rest of the team was trying to keep the other Black Tusk operatives off them. They were swarming in through the door, wave after wave of enemies coming towards them, guns blazing; luckily they weren’t able to use the Warhounds as support anymore. Kelso decided to trust the team with this and focus on Lau; there was no way she was going to let that bitch get away.
Unfortunately Lau was also a trained operative and it wasn’t easy to overpower her; Kelso reached for her knife nonetheless and tried to go for the woman’s shoulder. The first swing was a failure, but the second went into her flesh like it was butter, Lau’s pained grunt echoing in the office. She stumbled backwards and Kelso went for her face, hitting her with powerful blows again and again, probably dislocating a tooth or two. She wasn’t going to stop, Lau deserved this, all of this.
What ultimately made her stop was a bullet that went through her shoulder, a scream that escaped her lips both angry and surprised. She turned around to see a Black Tusk operative being tackled to the ground by Joaquin, the man shooting him in the head. Her sidearm was laying on the floor so she reached for it, Faye Lau unconscious and falling to the ground with a loud thud. She put her sidearm back into the sheath and made sure to secure Lau in a way that would immobilize her should she wake up; she bound her wrists and legs together, using duct tape to shut her up as well, just in case.
Kelso sat down on the floor to take care of her wound; the bullet went through and it didn’t hurt much, but it was still an inconvenience that she didn’t plan for. Serrano jumped behind cover right next to her; she was surprised to see him there.
“You okay?” she asked, looking towards him; Serrano was aiming with his assault rifle, shooting at a few Black Tusk operatives trying to make their way towards them.
“I am,” he said between magazines. “But you’re going to need help. Kestrel and Magnus are on their way here.”
“Coming back for Lau?”
“I think so. Still, we’re pinned down here. There’s no way we’re getting out of here the way we came.”
“We need to shoot our way through.”
“Yeah. But it’s going to take time.”
Kelso groaned and reached behind herself with the one arm that was still in good shape; the sniper rifle was still there and she was going to need it again.
Shame time was one of the things they didn’t really have.
***
Anna slumped down to the floor next to Dragov, making sure to get as close as possible to avoid the need to move too much. He could see that she was in a lot of pain; mostly because of her expression that made her look a lot like a ghost, but also because of how much she was shaking.
“You done, Cupcake?” he asked, turning his head a little to look at her more closely. Her lips were pale and there was sweat on her forehead when she reached for the water bottles she gave him a while earlier.
“Yeah,” she said, her voice pained and strained. “We got everything we need. They're coming for us as soon as they’re done with Faye Lau.”
“Your leg?”
“I don’t wanna look at it. I’m not sure what’s broken, it’s either the tibia or the fibula. Although if I had to judge by the pain level, I’d say both.”
Dragov tried to smile but something was wrong with his face, so he gave up before he managed any kind of grimace. He didn’t want to add to her discomfort.
“So we got what we came for?”
“Yeah. I mean, as soon as they get Faye Lau. She may be just icing on the cake at this point, but it’s still Faye fucking Lau.”
“Good.”
She fumbled with one of the bottles for a while, unscrewing the cap and reaching for his shoulder. He knew she told him to rinse the wounds, but he wasn’t able to do that. She unclasped the stripes holding his chest plate in place and took it off, tearing the material where it was still covering his shoulder. He could see that almost the entire front of his shirt was covered in blood, so he closed his eyes. He didn’t want to look.
“I’m going to pour some water on your wounds,” she said, her voice shaking almost as much as her fingers when she went for his hip, unzipping his pants in the process.
“There are easier ways to get in my pants, you know. All you had to do was ask.”
“Shut up.”
No laugh, no usual eye roll, no scolding. He could tell that it was bad. He knew that he was bleeding profusely and that he required immediate medical attention. But Joaquin wasn’t there and all he could hope for was his swift arrival in the server room. But he knew that the team was engaged in combat, he knew that they were going after Faye Lau. He also knew that as soon as Anna was done with her job and the data transfer back to Haven they were no longer a priority.
When Anna poured the water over his wounds it made him hiss in pain, suddenly remembering the exact moment the axe dug into his skin. Damn this fucking Hunter. He should have known that there was something wrong with Wilkins. He should have seen it coming. She was asking too many questions, but they were too busy taking care of other things. Who knows how much information she managed to sneak out of Haven. Who knows how long it has been going on.
He felt cold water running down his skin and it was actually surprisingly soothing, except for the part when it actually got into the wounds.
“Talk to me,” he heard Anna’s panicked voice coming through to him, bringing his mind back to what was actually going on. As soon as she was done with the rinsing she drank the remaining water and handed some to him as well. He was grateful for the soothing feeling of cold water running down his throat.
“About what?” he was surprised to hear that his own voice was barely above a whisper.
“I don’t know. Anything. I’ll even tolerate your stupid jokes.”
“Is it that bad?”
“It’s bad, yeah.”
Well, at least she wasn’t lying to him.
“How bad?”
“The cuts are not that deep, it doesn’t look like any internal organs are damaged. Especially where she got your hip. But the shoulder looks nasty. There were bone pieces in the wound, probably from your collarbone. I hope I managed to get all of them out.”
He sighed. Perfect. Now that his legs were finally getting better, the fucker just had to get this shoulder too.
“So what’s the worst part?”
“You’re losing blood. Will you be able to put pressure on the wound?”
“I’m not sure.”
“We have to try. And I’m going to need your Stinger Hive.”
“For what?”
“I need something to pull the skin back together. To stop the bleeding. The micro-drones should work fine until Joaquin gets here.”
“Wait… what?”
“The wings are made of thin wires. It’s our best option right now.”
Anna tore his shirt away completely, leaving his chest bare and suddenly very cold, exposed to the air in the room. She separated the cloth into two pieces, stuffing one inside the wound on his shoulder. It hurt like hell, but he just gritted his teeth and decided to focus on something else.
“Seriously, woman,” he said, trying his best to sound the way he always did. “I didn’t know you were so fierce. You rip Theo’s clothes apart too? Is that what you two are into?”
“No,” she answered fast, reaching for his other hand and bringing it to the wound. “Theo is the most gentle and sweet man I ever met. Not that you would know anything about being sweet and gentle. Hold this.”
“I can be very sweet when I want to,” he answered, trying his best to push on the cloth but failing miserably, judging by Anna’s expression. “I just usually don’t want to.”
“Figures,” her voice was shaking and he could see tears in her eyes. Fuck. Was it really that bad?
She reached for the Hive still attached to his backpack and pulled a few micro-drones out of the casing, taking them apart with her fingers. He watched her closely, internally grateful for having something to focus on.
“So you’re going to take those things apart or what?”
“I am,” she answered, already done with the first micro-drone. “It’s not going to work for the arm though. But it should be enough for the hip.
He looked down for a second and noticed a gash just above his waistline, red around the edges and pretty deep, but not bleeding much anymore. He moved his head to look at Anna again, not wanting to spend too much time dwelling on the injuries.
“So what about the arm?”
“I’ll figure something out.”
She had no idea what to do. He could hear it in her voice, but he wasn’t going to admit it.
When the wire punctured his skin right over the wound, he hissed with pain again, the sensation anything but pleasant.
“Sorry,” she said, twisting the wire a little to make sure that it will hold. “I don’t have anything that would work as a painkiller.”
“It’s fine,” he said through gritted teeth. “I’ve been through worse.”
“I know.”
She went in with a few more wires, probably six or seven, before she sighed contentedly and moved her attention back to his shoulder.
“Give it to me,” she said, reaching for the cloth still wedged in the wound, adding the second piece too. “I’ll hold it.”
“And what?”
“And we’re going to wait for Joaquin.”
He wanted to protest but Anna moved again, sliding against the wall on his other side, pushing his body to the front and wriggling a little to get behind him, grunting with pain whenever her broken leg connected with the floor. When she was finally situated against the wall behind him she slowly laid him down in her lap, making sure that the hip wound was secure, and pushed down on the shoulder wound to apply as much pressure as possible. It was a little weird to suddenly be laying on top of her stomach, but it was probably much easier for her to push down on his wound that way. Although he had to admit that it was much more comfortable than sitting against the wall.
“You think Theo is going to be happy about you getting all handsy with me?” he said, suddenly feeling very exposed with the way she was looking directly into his eyes. There was no way to hide from her worried look except by closing his eyes and he was kind of afraid to do that.
“To save your life? I think he would be fine with that. Although I can’t be sure.”
He sighed. This was no time to go for jokes. This was a time to make some things straight.
“Listen,” he said after a while, his throat incredibly dry. “I have to ask you a favor.”
“No favors. You’re going to do your job yourself.”
“Come on. You know it’s important.”
She shuddered a little and he could feel it against his back. She knew what this meant. And she knew that it was serious. But he could also understand why she was trying to pretend that it wasn’t.
“I know. That’s why we’re going to get you safely back to Haven and everything will be fine.”
“Do you really believe that?”
“I do.”
“No you don’t.”
Another shudder went through her body and he almost felt like he could cry. The tears weren’t coming though. Even at a time like this, he was so used to pretending that he was much tougher than he actually was that the tears were blocked with a lump somewhere in his throat.
“You’re right,” she said, her voice shaking. “I don’t.”
He saw that she was crying and that tears were falling down her face, landing on his cheek. It suddenly hit him that nobody has ever cared about him enough to cry for him in his entire life. Not his father, not his mother, not his friends.
Just her.
“Hey Anna,” he said, trying to catch her attention as she suddenly found the wall in front of them very interesting. “Look at me.”
She turned her head a little to oblige, but it was a gaze so full of pain he almost wished she didn’t. It wasn’t just physical pain though, it was something much deeper, much more profound.
She was genuinely afraid of losing him.
“Did you just call me by my name for the first time in your entire life?”
Oh God, he did. He actually did. He didn’t even realize.
“Maybe. Depends whether it’s good or bad.”
“It’s weird. I don’t think I ever want you to do it again.”
“Sure, Cupcake. It’s your call.”
She laughed a little and it made him feel strangely at peace. Maybe it wasn’t going to be so bad, he thought. He’s done so much, he’s built so much. And Dogman would make a fine leader of the Rikers. Probably a much better one than he could ever turn out to be. Maybe it was supposed to be this way, he thought. Maybe it would be for the better.
But he really, really didn’t want to go.
“Joaquin will be here soon,” he heard Anna whisper, her voice still shaking. But she probably said it more to console herself than to console him. She knew it wasn’t happening. There was no way to tell when they were going to be here and with their communications cut off, there was no way for her to call and ask.
But Dragov understood why she said that. She didn’t want him to worry. She really was a good friend.
“For what it’s worth, Cupcake,” he said, suddenly feeling cold and lost, darkness creeping around him in a way that was both frightening and comforting. “I’m glad it’s you.”
She leaned in to press her forehead against his. If he ever had a choice, he would have never done that to her - not like this, not here. But hell, dying in the arms of probably the only person who cared about you enough to cry when you’ll be gone? There are worse ways to go.
And he was taking whatever he could get.
“Me too,” she whispered and fuck, he could feel that she actually meant it. It finally made the invisible dam in his throat let go and tears started flowing down his face, quiet sobs leaving his lips in a way that was strangely liberating. So he let it out, he let it all out, finally feeling like he didn’t have to pretend to be someone he was not. He was scared and it was perfectly fine. “It’s okay, James.”
He gathered all the remaining strength he had left and reached upwards to place his hand on her head, sliding his fingers through her hair. He knew what she meant and it made all the difference in the world. It was okay for him to let go.
The last thing he felt before he let this strangely comfortable darkness swallow him up was her lips against his forehead, pressing into his skin in a kiss so soft and warm it almost felt unreal.
***
When Joaquin entered the server room a little more than two hours later, he was sure that both Anna and Dragov were dead.
As soon as the door opened he saw Anna sitting against a wall, her forehead pressed against Dragov’s as his body laid lifeless on top of hers, blood everywhere - even on their faces. He felt his heart sink because none of them seemed to move or breathe. Frankly, it might have been the most gut-wrenching scene he’s seen in his entire life. He was next to them in seconds, taking his backpack off with hands trembling so badly he wasn’t even sure that he was the one moving them at all. He felt tears prickling behind his eyelids but managed to blink them away, knowing that he couldn’t allow himself this moment of weakness now.
And then Anna took a sharp breath, pulling her head up and looking him right in the eyes with a gaze so empty that it made him hold his breath.
It was all a blur after that. Checking for Dragov’s pulse - it was weak, so weak, but it was still there, prying him away from Anna’s arms and her scream echoing through the room, Kelso and Marta next to her, holding her down by her arms, noticing the wound she was keeping pressure on and asking Barkworth to do it in her stead. Dragov needed blood and he needed it now, there was no use in waiting, it could have been a matter of minutes, seconds, so he started rummaging through his trauma kit and of course he was going to give him his own blood, as much of it as he could spare. He knew all Haven’s inhabitants’ blood types by heart, he knew he could be a donor for Dragov. He thanked the Heavens or whatever entity was keeping watch over him that day that he had packed the transfusion kit, that he had needles and tubes ready in his pouch, that the tiny silver tube was there, the stupid tube that Javier made fun of because it was probably going to kill him before he manages to use it correctly . He remembered what happened after that in pieces, like short movie clips played one after another - making an incision in Dragov’s wrist to go for the radial artery, threading it through the tube to make sure that its end was rigid, laying down next to him to make sure that they were both on the same level. He’s only seen Crile’s method in instruction movies and he was hoping that he remembered it well enough, at the same time going back to his initial thought that he was really hoping he would never have to actually use it. Apparently life had a way of playing tricks on him. He wasn’t going to let fear stop him though; too much depended on it.
He could see with the corner of his eye how the Peacekeepers placed Anna on a stretcher to carry her back to Haven; apparently Paul Rhodes sent them over just in case because of their lack of contact. Wait, was he seeing some Rikers too? The comms were back online as they brought a portable radio with them, but Kelso was the only one who was coherent enough to talk to the team back at Haven at this point. Anna was sobbing uncontrollably in a way he’s never seen her before; her entire body was shaking and she seemed absolutely devastated, but no other sound left her mouth after the initial screams when they were trying to pull Dragov away from her arms. There was blood on her face and on her clothes, in her hair, on her arms and hands. Joaquin had no idea if she had any serious injuries except for the bone fracture, but Kelso and Marta were fussing over her now, so he was planning to focus solely on Dragov.
He had no idea how long he laid there, allowing his blood to flow straight into Dragov’s artery, but at some point he could see color returning to the man’s face and he’s never felt so relieved in his life. He was only hoping that this amount of blood would be enough to stabilize him until they get him to Haven. They weren’t going to lose anyone else. Not on his watch.
He removed the tubes and needles, wrapped some bandage around his arm where he pushed the needle in and tried standing up slowly, his head swimming a little, but it didn’t seem too bad. Barkworth was still keeping pressure on the wound and it was then that Joaquin noticed the other laceration on Dragov’s hip, held together with something similar to wires instead of stitches, surprisingly clean and even. If Anna did that, he had to ask her how. She only had some basic medical equipment in her medkit and they definitely never used anything that looked even remotely similar.
With that and the way she took care of Dragov’s shoulder, she might have just saved the man’s life.
He instructed a team of Peacekeepers and Rikers on how to best carry Dragov back to Haven and they rushed it as much as possible, leaving ahead of him to get there as fast as they could. It was only a little more than an hour for a slow walk; they should be able to get there in around forty minutes if they go faster.
He went outside of the building, feeling the urge to catch some fresh air. It was only a few minutes after noon, the sun high up in the sky, the air crisp and fresh and such a welcome remedy for his straining lungs. He really wanted to smoke, but figured it might be best to go for an energy bar instead, so he sat down on the stairs and reached into his pocket.
No energy bar had ever tasted that good.
Marta sat down next to him a moment later, looking at him with questioning eyes.
“You okay?” He asked, his throat still a little sore, adrenaline leaving his system slowly and making him a little sleepy.
“No,” she said, turning away from him to look at the horizon. “We… For a while there, I was sure that we lost Anna and Dragov as well.”
“So was I,” Joaquin admitted and immediately felt relief wash over him. “But we didn’t.” At least not yet, he thought, but he wasn’t going to say that out loud, not to her.
“Is Dragov going to make it?”
“I don’t know. I did everything I could. The medical team at Haven is going to have to stabilize him with a lot more blood. Besides, that shoulder wound looked nasty.”
Marta shuddered a little; Joaquin wondered if it was because of what he said or because of the cold wind blowing just outside the building.
“I… I don’t think I could take losing anyone else,” she said after a while, reaching into her chest pocket and pulling out a piece of paper Joaquin found out to be a picture of Meyer. “It’s the only thing we have left, you know. This lousy picture I took just a few hours before he… before Wilkins killed him.”
“You think it was her?”
“Of course I do. There was no way he could’ve been caught off guard otherwise. You wanna know the worst part? I was fucking nice to her. I made sure she felt welcome in Haven. I didn’t want her or Barkworth to feel left out just because they were SHD. And how does she repay us? How does she fucking repay us?! By killing one of our own?!”
Joaquin stretched out his arm and placed his hand on Marta’s shoulder, trying to calm her down. He could understand all the emotions, all the anger. But he wasn’t ready to deal with it now. He wasn’t ready to try and talk about it. Neither was he ready to admit the fact that if Wlkins managed to infiltrate SHD, there might be more like her. No. He was refusing to occupy his mind with those thoughts. He needed to rest and he needed some peace and quiet.
But Marta needed his support and he was ready to deliver as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her in for a hug, using his other arm to keep her tight against his chest. She placed her head against his shoulder and relaxed, exhaling a long breath that she must have been holding for a while now.
“It’s going to be fine,” Joaquin said, whispering into the top of her head. “We’re going to get through this.”
“I know,” she answered quietly, obviously trying her best not to burst into tears. “I know.”
Strangely enough, Joaquin felt that they both somehow believed it.
***
Joaquin wasn’t surprised that Anna didn’t want to see Dragov back at Haven. They managed to stabilize him but he was still unconscious and very weak after losing so much blood. The damage to the shoulder was also very hard to mend as part of his clavicle was gone, resulting in the team having to repair it with other materials. The muscles were torn, the wound was deep. It was one of the most infuriating injuries Joaquin ever had to work with. Still, he and the team did the best they could with what they had. The scar was going to be awful, but honestly, it wasn’t that big of a price to pay for being alive.
“You saved his life, you know,” Joaquin said to Anna a week after they managed to push the Black Tusk out of New York, Peacekeepers and the Rikers preparing the United Nations building for their own use. “You stopping the bleeding and keeping pressure was the only reason why I was able to help him.”
Anna was sitting on a bench in one of Haven’s briefing rooms, her leg in a cast that was supposed to help it heal faster without unnecessary irritation, going through the data she managed to collect. There was so much of it that she and Theo had to find ways to organize it without reading through all of it - at least for now.
“So what,” she answered, her expression still blank, not looking directly at Joaquin.
He sighed. She was very hard to talk to ever since they came back.
“So he’s stable.”
“But he still hasn’t woken up.”
“No. But he’s very weak. He needs time.”
“Right.”
He didn’t know what would be the right question to ask. So he decided to go for the simplest one he could think of.
“Wanna talk about it?”
“No,” she answered fast, turning away from him; she would have walked away if she could.
Joaquin sighed and approached her, sitting on the bench right next to the files she placed there for review. He was staring at her intently and she finally turned towards him, looking him in the eyes.
“You sure?” He asked, trying to muster a sympathetic smile.
“I’m… Joaquin, please,” she said, her expression suddenly turning into something undecipherable. “I did my best to save him. I had no idea what I was doing. I could have done more harm than good. And I was so fucking scared, okay? And it hurt so much ,” He could see it in her eyes now, she was still scared. He wanted to console her, to say something that would make her feel better. But he had no idea what to say. “I felt him die. I was sure that he was dead and that I was sitting there for at least an hour holding a bloody corpse of my close friend. But I still kept pressure on the wound because I thought that maybe, just maybe, by some miracle this would have been enough. I don’t… I don’t think I have slept since, Joaquin. I keep repeating all this in my head. Every single minute of this torture.”
He nodded. He understood. He was no psychologist, but he knew how badly something like that could damage someone’s head.
“But it was enough, Anna,” he said, making sure to be looking her straight in the eyes. “It was enough. What you did was more than enough. The way you sutured his other wound? That was incredible. And there was nothing else you could’ve done. You did good.”
“But he might still die!” she almost screamed and Joaquin was a little taken aback. “I… to me, he already died once. In my arms. In that fucking server room. I’m not going through this again. I’ve had enough.”
If there was one moment when Joaquin felt like he could really use the power to read the minds of his friends, it would have been then. He really wanted to say something to make Anna feel better, to make her realize that she should have been proud of herself, not beating herself up over what she no longer could control.
But he couldn’t. And it hurt him almost physically.
***
Dragov woke up after more than a week, his entire body in pain he couldn’t believe was physically possible. That meant he wasn’t dead. Surprising. But where the hell was he?
All the events started coming back to him slowly as soon as he managed to open his eyes. He was in a server room with Anna. They fought with a Hunter - that fucker Wilkins - and her leg was broken. It was pretty bad. And then they… and then he…
His head started to hurt and he had to close his eyes again. He suddenly felt a hand on his arm.
“Hey,” a voice came from what sounded like a metal box, submerged deep in the water and very far away. “Dragov, look at me.”
He tried opening his eyes again but the headache was not helping. He turned his head to the side - a task that seemed almost impossible - and opened his eyes a little. It was Joaquin sitting next to his bed. Wait, could it mean that… that they actually found them in time?
“Is… she…”
He wanted to ask about Anna but couldn’t, his throat incredibly sore and his voice definitely not listening to him. Luckily Joaquin seemed to understand what he was trying to ask. As he lifted a water bottle with a straw to Dragov’s lips, he looked him directly in the eyes.
“Anna is fine,” he said, holding the bottle high enough so that Dragov wouldn’t choke. Water was doing wonders for his throat though; he remembered not to drink too fast, but he really wanted to. “We put her leg back together. It’s going to leave a scar, but she’ll be okay.”
Oh God. He remembered now. He remembered what they talked about when he was still sure that he was going to die. How she said that it was okay for him to let go. How he cried. How he felt at peace even though just a minute earlier he was scared shitless.
He needed to see her. He needed to make sure that she was alright with his own eyes.
“I want… to talk to her,” he said, water helping his throat a lot more than he would have thought.
“I’ll ask her,” Joaquin put the water bottle away and looked Dragov in the eyes again. “But she’s… she’s not feeling well. Mentally. She was sure that you died, you know.”
“I know,” he said, trying to fight the headache again. “That’s why I need to see her.”
Joaquin sighed and stood up, leaving the medical wing. Dragov could hear his boots against the floor, he could hear every single step until the sound was finally gone. He felt like shit. But he was alive. He still didn’t know how he was feeling about it though.
After what seemed like eternity he heard footsteps again, this time sounding a little strange. Oh, right. Anna probably wasn’t able to walk on her own. So she was coming to see him after all? Good. He needed to see her, even for just one second. He knew Joaquin told him she was fine, but he really needed to see it with his own eyes.
He won’t be able to be at peace otherwise.
He noticed her come in with Theo supporting her with an arm around her waist and they were by his bed in seconds, Anna leaning against him and placing her hands on his cheeks. The look in her eyes was something he couldn’t understand but he kept looking, unable to close his eyes even for a quick blink. She was there, she was fine. She really seemed to be okay.
Except she was crying, but those were obviously happy tears. He didn’t know how he could tell, but somehow he just could.
“You stupid fuck,” she said, pressing her forehead against his. “I was sure that you...that you were dead.”
“So was I,” he answered, closing his eyes and succumbing to the feeling of her warm hands against his skin. He didn’t need anything else. At least he thought so, but then Theo was next to him too, reaching out to place one of his hands on top of Anna’s and wrapping them both in an embrace that was surprising, but not unwelcome. The realization hit him like a freight train, suddenly making his chest feel a lot warmer.
Anna wasn’t the only one who cared about him enough to worry. Theo was worried too, and so was Joaquin. Hell, Dogman would probably be a little sad too, considering that he was one of the few people he could call his friends.
His friends and his family.
He smiled and allowed himself to feel this, to enjoy this moment of connection that he never thought he would have. Anna and Theo sat next to his bed, Theo going on and on about how Anna was devastated with what happened, how she couldn’t sleep, how she was scared for him every single day. Anna would silence him from time to time, but listening to them talk, seeing them comfortable with each other was all Dragov could hope for. He loved both of them. Seeing them happy meant everything for him.
Theo left after half an hour but Anna stayed longer, moving a little closer with the chair she was sitting on and reaching for Dragov’s hand, squeezing it gently. He squeezed back with as much force as he could muster.
“I really… fuck, I really thought that you were dead,” she said, looking him straight in the eyes with an expression that suddenly made him feel very vulnerable.
“I thought so too,” he admitted, hoping that the smile he was trying to go for would make her feel a little better. “When you said that… you know, that it was okay… I just let go. And I felt strangely at peace. I really thought that was it. And I… I didn’t want to do this to you. But I was happy to have you next to me.”
She smiled at him as well and Dragov could tell that she was feeling more relaxed with every passing minute. God, he was so glad that he didn't die. Not just because it would be scary to be gone - also because he now realized that she would have beaten herself up over it. Even though she was the one to save his life.
“I was scared that I didn’t do enough. That I fussed too much over my leg and couldn’t focus. You know, it really did hurt like hell. I don’t think I ever felt that kind of pain.”
“I can imagine,” he answered with a sigh. “But Joaquin told me what you did. You saved my life. If it wasn’t for you, I probably wouldn’t be here. So just own it, okay? Because you should.”
She laughed a little under her breath and Dragov laughed as well; unfortunately the laugh made the skin around his shoulder wound pull a little. He surprisingly noticed that the pain was much easier to swallow now. Just a dull ache somewhere under his skin, nothing to be too concerned about.
But he was feeling weak, so weak and tired that it almost made him unable to move at all.
“You’re probably right,” she said, almost as if she just realized exactly what happened, exactly what she did. “I probably should.”
“That’s my girl.”
She smiled at him again and leaned in to place another kiss on his forehead, turning around and reaching for her crutches.
“I’ll see you around then. Take some rest now.”
“I will,” he answered, sleep already threatening to take him before she even left the room. “I’ll see you around, yeah?”
“Yeah,” she waved at him and made her way towards the door. “Stay safe, BFG.”
With that, she finally left, swaying a little because of the crutches - he would have made fun of her but he was too tired, too exhausted to even try.
But he was happy. And she was safe. Nothing else mattered at that moment.
***
It felt strange to be celebrating Christmas again - the year before turned into a tragedy exactly before the holidays, making people sick with the Dollar Flu, killing so many in the span of just a few weeks. But this year was different - it was full of hope, full of comfort. Of course it wasn’t perfect, nothing ever could be anymore. But this was strangely as close to perfection as anyone could have hoped for. Peacekeepers and civilians decorating Christmas trees, preparing symbolic gifts, singing Christmas carols and playing Christmas songs? It was an unusual sight, sure. But somehow it was so hopeful in its simplicity.
Paul Rhodes was standing in front of a Memo Wall that Marta Thorne started putting together after the infamous party they held at the beginning of December. Pictures of Haven’s inhabitants, of happy kids, of Rikers having fun. There was one of Dragov drinking straight from a bottle of vodka, one of Kelso being obviously angry at the photo being taken, one of Meyer smiling a shy smile, hell, even one of him drinking coffee from a chipped mug with a stern expression on his face. When did she even manage to take this photo? Oh, and there was one of Anna and Theo as well, Theo asleep against her shoulder while she was working on something. He sighed and turned away from the wall, already beating himself up enough over what happened. He might have been too proud - or too stupid, he wasn’t sure - to say anything earlier, but life has taught him a very important lesson recently. You can never know when it’s going to be too late to say what’s on your mind.
So he made his way to the basement where Anna and Theo would undoubtedly be, working on something important as usual. They were upgrading their defences now and working on some transmitters that could be installed in the UN building some time in January - they were probably going to have to move in there for a while, but it was worth it to have another communication hub. And there was so much tech that they took from there. It made their work a whole lot easier.
As soon as he walked down the stairs he noticed Alani Kelso talking to the pair, obviously excited about something. Wait… was she laughing ?
“Oh, you can be sure that we all hated when he called Agents Sheriff,” oh, so they were talking about Manny now? “But he’s a nice guy. You would have liked him, Theo.”
“If he tried calling me Sheriff once, I would have singed his eyebrows in his sleep,” Theo was obviously agitated as well, Anna’s laugh echoing in the background. “Seriously. There are some things that you just don’t do .”
It was then that they noticed Rhodes approaching and the conversation died down, everyone looking at him expectantly - including Kelso. Well, he had something to say to her too. Might as well get two birds with one stone if he was going to get emotional.
“Hey kids,” he said, trying to force himself to smile. “Having fun?”
Anna smiled back but her smile was very careful, unsure. He hated it. He hated the fact that he didn’t come to talk to her sooner. Somehow he just couldn’t do it before. He worried about her a lot, worried that she would get injured in the field. She did, but she also proved that she could hold her own. And he knew to what extremes she had to go to save Dragov’s life. It made him so proud of her, but he never said it.
He should have said it.
“A little, yeah,” Kelso leaned back in the chair she was sitting in. “You okay, Rhodes?”
“Yeah. I just came here to apologize. I figured it was high time to finally talk to all of you.”
“You don’t have anything to apologize for,” Theo spoke fast, looking him directly in the eyes; sometimes he hated his guts and hated the fact that he was such a good kid. “We were all a little on edge and…”
“No,” he cut him off before he managed to say anything else. “No. I have a lot to apologize for. Especially to you, Theo. I was an ass. I should have never spoken to you the way I did. I didn’t really mean it.”
Silence fell between them for a second and Anna reached over to take Theo’s hand, Rhodes taking comfort in the gesture as well.
“I know,” Theo answered, a small smile blooming on his lips. “I didn’t… I mean, I was a little hurt. But I knew what you had to be going through. I was worried about Anna too. Unnecessarily, as it turned out.”
Anna smiled at Theo, the look in her eyes soft and loving. Rhodes sighed and moved a little closer, taking a seat right next to Kelso.
“It was stupid of me,” he said, looking at Anna this time. “I knew you could hold your own. But I let my fears and worries cloud my judgement. You did far more than we could have ever hoped for and you saved Dragov’s life. And I couldn’t be more proud of you.”
This time, her smile was much more sincere, much less reserved. He couldn’t have expected the relief that washed over him at the sight.
“Just to be fair,” she said, a little mocking undertone to her voice. “I did get hurt pretty badly. My leg is really fucked up. Joaquin says I’ll be able to walk normally some time around the middle of January. And it’s driving me nuts.”
“As much as I don’t mind helping you around Haven,” Theo chimed in, smiling as well. “You could finally go for the wheelchair that Joaquin suggested. It would make our lives so much easier.”
“Oh, I’ll show you easier ,” she blurted out laughing. “Wait until the next time you ask me for any help. I’m going to ask you to go to Joaquin as well, if he’s so smart .”
“That’s how you’re going to talk to the love of your life? I’m hurt, Anna. You just hurt my feelings.”
“Who told you you were the love of my life?”
“You did. Two days ago, when we were…”
“Okay, that’s enough,” Anna suddenly blushed and nudged Theo with her elbow. Rhodes laughed. They were going to be the death of him one day, but he adored them both so much. “Anyway. It’s okay, Rhodes,” Anna said after a while, letting go of Theo’s hand and focusing her gaze on him. “I know you. And I know you were just worried. I’m glad you finally decided to talk to me though. It was a little painful to see you avoiding me all this time.”
“Yeah,” he said, sighing deeply again. “That was stupid as well. But I’m not going to do that anymore. I don’t… we have important things to do here. I’m not letting petty arguments or my stupid ego get between us ever again.”
The smile that lit her face up at that was wonderful, making him feel warm despite the fact that it was pretty cold in the basement.
“Good,” she said, leaning in to place her hand on his where it was resting against the table. “I would hug you, you know, but I can’t really get up. So it will have to wait.”
“It’s fine,” Rhodes laughed a little, squeezing her hand tighter. “I’m just glad you’re okay. I’m glad you’re all okay. And I hope we’ll be able to keep it this way.”
“We will,” this time it was Kelso who spoke, her voice strangely warm and pleasant as well. “Because I talked to Manny and we might have an idea on how to organize the cooperation between SHD and Nova a little better. There are still a lot of things to do in New York. And something tells me you could use out help.”
“We could,” Rhodes admitted, turning in the chair to face her this time. “Especially now that we know what the Black Tusk are planning. We have a lot more information about their plans for DC as well. We could help each other. Especially after we set up the communication hub.”
“That’s what I was hoping for,” she answered, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “We got Faye Lau and shipped her to DC on the first chopper, but there are still other BTSU operatives that we have to go after. And Sokolova? We need to look into this. As long as the Black Tusk are present in any part of the US, we’re not going to be completely safe. You have connections, we have the people. This could work, Rhodes. This could work long term .”
“I know,” he answered, suddenly feeling much more at peace. “And I would really like that. You’re a good friend, Kelso. That’s also something I wanted to say. And I might hate SHD, but I could never hate you. We’ll help you as much as we can. And we’ll get through this together.”
“That’s good to hear,” Kelso smiled a little, her facial expression softening even more. “Because I feel the exact same way.”
It might not have been perfect, no alliance ever was, but something kept telling Rhodes that this was the right way. That SHD was not just an organization, that it was mostly people. People like Kelso, Manny, some other Agents he met on the way. They were good people and they had good intentions.
And it has always been more than enough.
It was going to be enough now too.
Signs the signs invisible
Trace the trail and follow you wherever you will lead me
To the heart of me and your spilling grief
To answer to a God who never answers you
Feathernest invest and gain
Shiny brass is milk and grain
And yours is to just sustain and chip away with haste
Treasure time and savour taste
And all the while you quietly crave and crave
The day is done
Time you've made has come and gone
Stay asleep now
Everyone into position
Everyone into their place
Grow to grow at snail's pace
Like carnivores at grace
Feed to feed and building face
Pay to play and find a place.
This part of my fanfiction also has a playlist set to fit the mood of each chapter. You can find it right here!