As the morning sun rose, beams of light pierced through the darkness. Against the black-and-white sky, three UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters flew in low from the distance, their flight altitude just above the treetops—well below the detection threshold of Costa Rica's air defense radar systems.
"Thup-thup-thup\~\~\~"
Suddenly, one of the helicopters' rotors made a strange noise. The aircraft began to wobble slightly. The pilot radioed in: "Little Bird Three to Little Bird One, we've got a malfunction, requesting immediate landing…"
"Little Bird One copies. Three, hold position and await further orders from Nest. One and Two will continue with the original mission."
"Little Bird Two, roger that."
The sky grew brighter by the second. On the horizon, the fiery red sun had already begun to rise. Two fast-moving figures darted across the dawn sky while Little Bird Three slowly descended, searching for a flat area to land.
...
At the edge of the compound, Owen silently made a hand signal. Ghost, Monica, and Heartbeat followed, slipping into the water without a sound. In moments, they had vanished entirely, as if they'd never been there.
Through his sniper scope, Swagg kept toggling his view between the water's surface and the guards posted onshore. The river was calm, giving no sign that anyone was swimming beneath it. A while later, four boonie hats slowly surfaced halfway between their position and the dock sentry.
Owen took a breath, observing that the guard showed no sign of awareness. Then he slipped back underwater, followed by the other three heads, disappearing in succession.
Swagg watched as his four teammates vanished beneath the surface again. Taking a deep breath, he shifted his scope back to the guard on the dock.
The bald guard stood lazily with his MP5, clearly relaxed. This was their main base, surrounded by Mikhail's territory for dozens of kilometers. Even the Costa Rican government wouldn't dare approach without permission. If the boss hadn't just told them to stay alert for Mikhail's upcoming arrival, he'd probably be inside watching the soccer game by now. Wonder what the score is…
As the guard's mind drifted, the Quick Response Team had silently closed in from the river. Beneath the still waters, Owen now had a clear view of the bald guard. He slowly raised both hands above the water's surface, preparing.
Through the sniper scope, Swagg saw Owen's waiting hands and knew he was in position. He took a deep breath and adjusted his crosshairs over the shiny dome of the guard's head.
Three… two… one… Swagg held his breath.
"Pfft\~"
He squeezed the trigger. The M200 let out a low mechanical thud. The bullet spun out of the barrel and hit its target with surgical precision.
A burst of blood flashed from the guard's head as his body collapsed backward—right into Owen's waiting arms. The large body slipped quietly into the river, not making a sound.
A second later, four boonie hats resurfaced. Owen, with his silenced M4A1, rose slowly from the water and stepped ashore, followed closely by the others.
The four of them moved like ghosts—silent and invisible—as they crossed through the grass and stopped at the barbed wire fence.
Just beyond the fence stood the watchtower—the second target. But they had to wait until the side guard moved out of sight. Swagg held his fire. The others waited in silence.
After a moment, the side guard appeared briefly and then disappeared on his patrol route.
From this point, they had thirty seconds.
Three… two… one.
"Pfft."
The second sentry died quietly atop the tower, unnoticed by anyone.
After the shot, Ghost immediately pulled out a pair of wire cutters and quickly snipped open a gap in the barbed wire.
At the same moment, the side guard returned from his patrol—only to crumple dead the moment his head came into view.
The Quick Response Team slipped through the gap into the compound. Owen glanced at his tracker—Catherine's signal was directly ahead in one of the buildings. But they couldn't move in just yet.
There were still two barracks, one on the left and one on the right. If they didn't clear those first, they risked being exposed before they could even find the hostage.
Owen made a hand signal—he and Monica would take the left building, while Ghost and Heartbeat would clear the right.
Ghost nodded and took position with Heartbeat outside their assigned barracks. Inside, they could hear a soccer game on TV, along with the occasional Italian chatter. Ghost signaled that they were ready and glanced at Owen. Owen signaled back—both teams moved simultaneously.
Owen and Ghost led the entry. Once they were inside, Monica and Heartbeat—who had been guarding the rear—turned and followed.
"Pfft-pfft-pfft\~\~\~"
In Owen's building, everyone was asleep. Snores and the sound of teeth grinding filled the air, which smelled terrible. This was where silenced weapons proved their worth—shooting one man wouldn't wake the one in the next bunk.
In their sleep, the targets never knew what hit them. Owen cleared one side of the room while Monica took the other.
Once all targets were confirmed dead, the pair exited the building. At the same time, Ghost and Heartbeat emerged from the opposite barracks. Both teams regrouped and advanced toward the building holding Catherine.
Each of the four covered a different direction as they silently approached the front entrance. It was a single-story structure, which meant the search would be relatively quick.
"All clear."
Swagg had been monitoring the perimeter. With the area secure, the team approached the door without incident. Faint screams of a woman's agony filtered out from inside. As they gently pulled the door open, the screams grew clearer, accompanied by flickering hallway lights. Owen suddenly realized—the signal on the tracker was gone.
The screams continued. Owen slipped the now-useless tracker back into his pocket. They were likely torturing Catherine with electricity, which had shorted out the micro-tracker implanted in her body.
Owen tapped Ghost on the shoulder—he took point. Owen followed, then Monica, then Heartbeat in the rear. The team moved in a tight CQB formation, swiftly entering the building and beginning their search.
The flickering hallway lights and the woman's screams created an eerie atmosphere, but visibility was unaffected. The team moved down the corridor, following the sound—it wasn't far now. But they couldn't rush.
They reached a corner. Ghost and Owen coordinated the cut, clearing the angle slowly. As their positions rotated, Owen took the lead, with Ghost behind him. Monica remained third, and Heartbeat continued to guard the rear.
The team advanced again. Soon, there were doors on both sides of the hallway. Owen halted and covered forward. Ghost and Monica moved to clear the rooms on the left and right, while Heartbeat maintained rear security.
"Clear." After a brief suppressed gunshot, the two returned.
With the formation reset, the team pressed forward.
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