Kane's voice cut through my earpiece. "Target left, moving to flank. Dylan, suppress that position. Stryker, you're clear for approach."
Dylan's weapon barked steady and controlled, laying down covering fire. I moved through the chaos, clearing hostiles. Then a hostile broke from cover behind me. I pivoted, took him down, but his partner was already firing.
The rounds hit like sledgehammers. One, two, three impacts that rang through my chest plate with violent force. The vest held but the kinetic energy transferred straight through to bone and tissue. I went down hard, all the air driven from my lungs in a single explosive gasp.
Panic hit first. My chest wouldn't expand. Wouldn't pull air. The vest had saved my life but the blunt force trauma paralyzed my diaphragm, leaving me gasping like a fish on dry land. Vision tunneling. Darkness creeping in at the edges.
Move. Had to move. Hostiles still active. Dylan exposed.
I forced my body to respond, rolling to cover despite the screaming protest from my ribs. Each attempt to breathe felt like drowning. Small sips of air, not enough, never enough.
Dylan appeared above me, his weapon tracking new targets. He positioned himself between me and the remaining threats, firing with controlled precision while I fought to make my lungs work again.
That's when the sniper round caught him. The impact spun him around, blood spraying dark against the starlight. He went down beside me, weapon clattering against rock.
Air finally rushed into my lungs in a painful gasp. I forced myself up despite the fire in my chest, grabbed Dylan, hauled him to cover. Blood ran hot over my hands. Mercer's riflecracked from his overwatch position. The sniper threat went silent.
"Hostiles down," I reported once I could breathe again, my voice rough and strained. "Advancing on primary target. Kessler's moving east. I've got pursuit."
Dylan's voice came through strained but operational. "Targets down. Multiple hostiles neutralized. Stryker, watch your six. You've got one breaking toward your position from the northeast."
"Copy. Engaging."
The hostile went down. Then it was just me and Kessler in the darkness.
The memory fades. We're still moving through the forest, Dylan's weight heavy against my side.
"That sniper had good position," Dylan says quietly, like he's reading my thoughts. "Almost got us both."
"Almost doesn't count."
"Tell that to my shoulder."
Ahead, the terrain rises sharply. Rally Point Charlie. Kane materializes from the trees, weapon ready. His tactical gear shows damage from the engagement but he's moving well.
"Mercer's holding the back door," Kane says. "How bad is he?"
"Bad enough. Needs Willa soon."
Kane studies Dylan with the cold assessment of someone who's triaged wounded men in worse situations than this. "Can he move?"
"I'm right here," Dylan mutters. "And yeah, I can move."
"Then we move. Committee's regrouping but they'll be on us again soon." Kane pulls up his tactical display. "We're taking the long route back. Adds distance but keeps them away from Echo Base."
That's the calculation. Dylan needs medical attention now, but leading Committee forces to Rachel, Lucas and the others isn't an option. So we run the long route, bleed a little more, and pray Dylan's got enough left to make it.
We move through the mountains. The terrain helps, forcing our pursuers to slow down, to check every approach. Steep slopes turn each step into a battle. Dylan stumbles more often now, his weight growing heavier against my side. Behind us, voices echo through the forest. Professional communications, teams coordinating search patterns.
Mercer drops back, covering our six with precision that keeps the Committee forces cautious. His rifle speaks and someone goes down. The pursuit hesitates, regroups. We gain distance.
"Movement, northeast ridge," Mercer reports through the earpiece. "Team of four, advancing on your position."
Kane's response comes immediate. "Dylan, can you move faster?"
Dylan's breathing is ragged in my ear. "Negative. Leave me. I'll buy you time."
"Not happening," Kane says, his voice flat with finality.
