ALICE

Chapter 32: BRIEFING

 Chapter 32: BRIEFING

 Alice listened to Cole intently as he explained the plan.

 "We're going to move in from the East. There are RPG towers that can take us down, and if they miss, they can send a transmit a message to main base and all other towers. So we're going to get out about a click out of the outermost towers. It'll be a walk, roughly 8 kilometres. While we're still pretty far away, we still have to expect patrols of LSF everywhere."

 As he rolled up the maps and charts and handed them to Anton, who shoved them into his pack, he lay down on the floor, rolled open the helicopter door, and pointed a M27 bolt action sniper rifle out the door. A silencer was screwed onto the end, but the shot still filled the helicopter as he took out a lone LSF stupidly wandering through the forest.

 "We're clear, stabilize here."

 As the helicopter went into a hover, Redd pulled black ropes out of a compartment on the wall. Each one had a caribiner on the end, as Krew flipped open panels on the floor, revealing metal loops, and Alice put together what was going on.

 Redd clipped the ropes to the loops, throwing the other end out of the helicopter, which spooled downwards like a spool of ink. Angel clipped a carabiner which was located on his vest to the rope, and jumped out without a word. Redd was next, sliding down slowly, using his legs wrapped around the rope to slow his descent as he patrolled the ground, scanning the earth with his rifle.

 Krew looked at her.

 "Here, look," He guided her to a rope, and picked it up. "Just clip it onto this carabiner, and slide down, slowly."

 Alice had butterflies flittering all around her gut, but just went for it, sliding down the rope much quicker then she would have liked.

 She hit the ground on her feet, feeling the small remainder of the sprained ankle. James, Anton, and Krew followed.

 After Redd made sure everyone was there, he waved at the helicopter, which pulled up and to the left, doing a 180, and headed back to HQ.

 "Right, let's get moving. Stay together, I'm on point, Krew take our six."

 "Right." He said, in a Russian accent.

 This area of the forest was different then then the one Alice had encountered when she first arrived in Landerwon. There was a thin canopy, and the pale moonlight shine through the trees. There were also large rocks and boulders in between the thicker, spaced out trees.

 The team moved forward as one, guns aimed in every direction. Alice was in the middle, beside Anton and in front of Taco, who was aiming an AK-47 uncomfortably close to her. 

 3 quick unsilenced shots rang through the air. 

 "Contact! Get to cover!"

 The team somehow smashed into three groups, Krew and Anton, Taco, and Angel, and Alice and Redd.

 "Where is he?!" Redd said, pointing his rifle around the thick tree they were hiding behind. 

 A chunk of bark flew off as another burst of bullets sprayed over it.

 "Damn!"

 Alice pointed her rifle around the corner without putting herself behind it, and shot off a few rounds in blindfire.

 "Team," Redd said into his headset. "Put supressing fire on the shooter. Alice and I will move up and try to flank him."

 A silenced but still loud shot kept the shooter down in his cover.

 "Let's move!"

 Alice and Redd pushed forward, trying to maintain stealth. As Angel and Taco reloaded, Krew and Anton picked up the fire. The two came across a huge boulder that it looked like the shooter was behind. Redd let his rifle hang by his side from the band that was around it, and slid out his combat knife. He motioned to Alice to do the same.

 As Alice moved in, knife in hand and a grizzled look on her face, she steeled herself for what she was about to do.

 She swung around the corner, and swung her knife out at the guy. She went right through his arm, and he squealed in pain. She tried to wrech it out, but it was gathering traction against his humerous. Alice pulled out her M1911 out of the houlster and pushed the barrel in his mouth, spattering spine bits and blood all over the rock behind him. Redd took out another man who was farther back, not even using the scope on his rifle.

 "Clear, move up to the large boulder."

 As the four other men pushed forward, Redd used his knife to carve a vertical line on his rifle.

 "What are you doing?" Alice asked, cleaning her knife on the small patch of grass behind her.

 "Tally. Just a tradition, but we try to keep track of the kills we get." He looked at her, "You got one, carve a line into the gun you used."

 Alice picked up a sharp rock, and carved a line into the M1911. One person. Good. 

 The rest of the group moved up, and made sure everyone was ship-shape. Alice and the rest of them, moving closer to their goal with every step.