𝔾𝕌ℕ𝕊 𝔸ℕ𝔻 ℝ𝕆𝕊𝔼𝕊

Chapter Two

"JOHN PRICE"

The name was recognizable immediately, one that she had heard many times in her childhood. She could recall occasions when her father used to rant about how reckless yet efficient one of his fellow soldiers was, always referring to him as "Price." She could even recall the first time she met the man, at the age of 15 when her father had come back and brought along his friend during the holidays. It was Thanksgiving, she remembered, and her father had found out that while his comrade had taken leave like he did, he wouldn't be able to see his family.

So, he joined in on their little celebration, something that a younger version of herself had found cool, especially when she got to show off her hunting skills to someone that wasn't her father. She had been the one to catch the Turkey they would be eating, and when Price had seen her shoot one down, and pluck its feathers as they took it back to the cabin, he told her he "had never seen a little girl shoot so well." At the time, she had a bit of snark when she informed him she was not little and had been doing this for years. He had done nothing but smiled fondly, chuckling as he ruffled her hair, which promptly had her playfully smacking his hand away with a laugh.

Now though... it had been so long since they spoke. She watched the phone ring for a moment, as she was still in shock. Why was he calling? Why now of all times? After a few moments, her phone automatically went to a missed call, meaning that Price would have received her Voicemail. She sighed, putting her phone beside her as she shook her head. Maybe he would call again later... maybe he wouldn't. Either way, she still needed to rest. But just as she was going to lay down and try to get some sleep, her phone rang again. She picked it up, only slightly surprised to see John's name again. That was quick... She sighed, pressing the answer button and holding the phone up to her ear. "Hello?" She spoke, her tone calm.

"Hello Aria."

His voice was still that deep baritone that it always was. It had always reminded her of her father's, even if Price had never had the southern accent that her father did. She shook her head lightly of the thought, sighing. "Hello Price. It's been a while." She kept her tone polite, a habit she usually had when it came to speaking to her higher ups. She could hear his chuckle through the phone. "That it has. Been nearly 6 years... how have you been?" He asked. Angel - or Aria, as that was her real name - could tell that as much as he might have wished for this to be a casual call, it wasn't. This was business. But she entertained it a bit longer, knowing that he wouldn't waste time with the pleasant conversation if he didn't want to really know how she was. "Things have been busy. Been working hard. I heard you made it to Captain. Congrats." She is genuine in her statement, knowing that a little after the last time they had seen each other he had been promoted to Captain. I really wish he would get to the point though, she thought, fiddling with the fabric of her cargo pants.

"Thank you... As much as I appreciate it, I'm sure you're wondering why I called." She sighs, laying down. "Like you said, John. Its been 6 years since... it just seems out of the blue." She shrugs, sighing. She could here his chuckle from the other end of the phone, though it didn't seem too cheerful. "Well... as you might already be aware, I'm the Captain of a joint multi-national special operations task force. We're called Task Force 141." Aria listened intently as Price spoke, knowing that he wouldn't bother with such an explanation if it wasn't important. She had heard of TF-141, though it was mostly stuff through the grapevine. All could agree that they were efficient soldiers, even if some saw that in different lights. "My team and I have recently been made aware of a terrorist by the name of Hassan Zyani. He's an Iranian Major and is working with AQ, a terrorist group, after his General was killed." 

Aria listened, giving a sigh. "Where's he headed?" She asked, standing to pace around the room. "Mexico. He may be in contact with the Las Almas Cartel." She cursed quietly under her breath. "Price, why are you telling me all this?" She asked, awaiting his response. She knows what he might say, but she needs to be sure. "I've contacted your employers about having you temporarily work with the 141. You're on high demand for all kinds of extractions, Aria." She pinches the bridge of her nose between two fingers, already feeling the stress building. "You know I don't do teams, Price. You know I work on these kinds of missions alone." She frowned. "I know what happened before... but we have intel that Hassan may have taken hostages in an attempt to dissuade any possible confrontations. My commanders are trying to push for an attack, but without proper intel, we can't just lash out. I wouldn't ask if I didn't have to. We need your help, Baker." John's voice was serious as he spoke. The situation was already bleak, that was clear. Aria sighed, sitting down on the bed. She knew what had to be done.

"When do we start?"

"Right now."

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