Wither With Me

CHAPTER 38 - INTERVENTION

A big group of people piled up around the windows of the hospital's north side, attracted by something in the plaza outside. However, only a few brave ones stood in plain view, holding weapons. The rest either took cover or stayed several meters away from any openings. They whispered among themselves, not daring to raise their voices.

Julien made a conscious effort to stay calm, and approached the balcony in front of him. He immediately spotted the cause of the commotion. Two military trucks, parked at both sides of the statue of Saint Marie. The trucks' cabs had long metal poles pointed up towards the sky, adorned with white flags, which occasionally fluttered in the morning breeze.

'White flags...? That's usually a sign of peace and negotiation. They're being quite careful, aren't they...?'

Suspicious. Why would the military keep their distance and preemptively bring out white flags?

'They know. They know we don't trust them. Damn it... Maybe there's one of them in here with us...!?'

"B-Boss? What do we do...?"

"..."

******

"Captain Isaac, someone is coming out to a balcony on the sixth floor." said Connor, sitting on the passenger seat.

"I can see him. Keep your eyes peeled." replied Isaac.

He focused his binoculars on the target. Male, ordinary civilian attire, no visible weapons. His face expressed nervousness and insecurity. He didn't look like a threat.

The man carried a big piece of cardboard, which he raised into the air, exposing a message written on it:

[YOU'RE NOT

WELCOME HERE

LEAVE]

"It seems like the intel we got from [Fox] is accurate. You'd expect people to be happy to see us these days. But not them, huh...?"

"How should we proceed, captain?"

"Private Erik, tie a white rag around your arm and go out there, we'll send a message back to them. Keep your weapon down and don't show any hostility. We don't want to trigger a violent reaction."

"Yes, sir!" answered a voice from the back compartment of the truck.

According to [Fox]'s discoveries, someone was seeking to seed those people with hatred and distrust towards the Army, possibly attempting to ignite an armed conflict. However, hostile or not, they were still civilians.

Isaac knew what they had to do; it was only a matter of making the right choices. All he saw were people they had to rescue, and a mystery they had to uncover. Nothing else.

He spotted Erik on the side mirror, walking around the back of the truck, carrying a paper sheet and a sharpie. There were no signs of retaliation from the hospital.

'Does this mean they are willing to negotiate, after all...? That's convenient.'

"Alright... Erik, write this..."

******

"[Donovan], this is PT-01, do you copy? Over."

"Affirmative, Prometheus. I hear you."

"Both parties have established peaceful communication. There's a possibility they might end up reaching an unfavorable outcome for us. Fix it."

"I'm on it."