Changed by Time ✔

twenty-four.

2157 hours

Andrea practically tackled Wendy to the ground as their discovery finally set in. The women couldn't help but laugh as they relished in their success.

Andrea quickly took off her fox mask, throwing it aside on the edge of the golden pool. She was quick to tears, her eyes clouding over as they began streaming down her cheeks. She buried her face in Wendy's shoulder, happiness overwhelming the two of them.

Wendy, however, felt as if there were something missing from the discovery. It was no mystery as to what it was – Nolan should've been there with them. He would've probably broken down into hysterical sobs once the substance began to flow, quicker and harsher than Andrea.

It wasn't even her mission to begin with, why should Wendy be the one to enjoy the majority of the glory?

Andrea let go of Wendy, wiping her tears away with the palm of her hand. The salty liquid soaked into the fabric, but Andrea couldn't care less about the added sensation. She pulled herself to her feet and stepped towards the golden pool.

"It's practically liquid gold," she said, kneeling as she hovered her hand above it.

It was quite opaque, but not enough so that Andrea couldn't see her own reflection. She traced her fingers just above the liquid, letting out a shaky sigh as she stared down at herself.

"I've wanted this for years. Now..." She slowly lowered her hand towards the liquid. "I can finally get the power I need..."

She stopped as a bullet flew past her head and embedded itself into the rock wall ahead. The gunshot echoed throughout the cave, causing the two women to snap their heads back in the direction of the shot.

There stood three people wearing gas masks – two were in full black combat attire while one was in civilian attire. They stood on top of one of the larger rock piles, practically staring down at them. The one in civilian attire began taking pictures of the place, clearly no longer worried about the camera's flash. Wendy blinked a couple times as she stared at the civilian.

No. Way.

"Looks like you pretty much did our job for us," the middle person announced, Wendy quickly identifying her as Abigail. "I have to thank you, Wendy. We really are quite the team."

"Bite me!" Wendy snapped back, clenching her fists. "You'll have to kill me if you want to get to this."

Abigail pulled out her pistol and aimed it at Wendy. "With pleasure."

Andrea grabbed Wendy's wrist and pulled her out of the line of fire just as Abigail pulled the trigger. The bullet flew into the substance with a sharp splash.

Andrea continued to pull Wendy away as the other operative pulled out their gun and continued firing at them. They stopped behind a rock; the bullets either ricocheted or embedded themselves in the thick stone.

Andrea peered around the edge of the stone, watching as the operatives eventually ceased fire and began to move onto other plans. She furrowed her brows as she said, "We'll probably have to take them on one-by-one. I'm assuming that civilian is Nolan, so if you—" Andrea cut herself off as she fully turned, realizing that Wendy was no longer behind her. All that was left was the duffle bag that held her dirtied clothes. "Shit."

2208 hours

Nolan kept his head down, covering his ears as Abigail and Kita continued firing upon Wendy and her partner. They stopped for a moment, turning to one another as Kita set down the bag and began to riffle through it. He pulled out a sniper riffle and held it out to Wendy, who took it and began to backtrack through the rocks.