Discharged: A Rainbow Six Siege Story

Chapter 7: Death's Shadow

     Once I wake up, I see that I'm no longer in the desert, and Ryan is missing. I stand up and look around. There are a few trees and some grass and flowers. I walk around a bit before being met by a shadow. "You've been one hard soul to catch, Jason." It says. "I certainly have been, huh? Probably because I'm smarter than you, Death." I say. He motions for me to sit under the tree. "Maybe, or because I keep letting you live. Your day will come, Jason." He says. "Yea, it will," I say, taking a seat under the tree. "But, it's not yet. At least, I don't think." I finish. Death then takes a seat opposite me. "Your hunch would be correct. I believe you'll accomplish your goal. I've been holding on to her, waiting for you to save her. Just give me the soul of the man who killed her, and we'll consider it a trade." Death says. I stick out my hand. "Deal, brother." We shake hands.

     I wake up and look out along our path. Ryan's still asleep, so I decide to read Mira's diary again. 

Entry 50: I haven't seen Orion around lately. I wonder if he got sick or something.

     To me, that seems like he left that school as if to never see Elena again. Let's see what's on the next page.

Entry 51: I've had this creeping feeling that someone's been watching me. It feels like someone I know, as well.

     I start to feel rage as I read this. If I were there, I would've kicked Orion's ass. Ryan wakes up as I'm mounting my horse. "Let's go, I want this over with," I say. He gets up and mounts his horse and we ride off. It's about 6:00 am when we leave, so we should reach the castle by sundown.

     Ryan and I are met with no more than one terrorist, after 7 hours of riding with no action. "Well, looks like a terrorist finally shows up!" I say and jump off of Hades. The terrorist is standing still, doing nothing. I sneak up behind him and try to assassinate him. He turns around as I try to get my sword around him and sends me off flying. "Oh shit!" I say as I hit a dune. Ryan tries to shoot him, but the terrorist knocks him off of his horse before he can get a well-aimed shot. Ryan stands back up and tries to fist-fight the terrorist. He also gets launched. I stand up and think for a second. "Usually, if they're really strong, they're also really stupid." I think. I grab a rock and hit him with it. "Hey, jackass! Over here!" I say. He turns and grabs the rock I threw at him. He throws it back at me, and I barely manage to catch it with Shepherd. "Damn, he has a good head on his shoulders," I say. Shepherd now appears. "I could light this rock aflame and throw it back harder." He says. "How about a game of baseball?" I ask. Shepherd gets the idea. He lights the rock on fire and I get ready to swing at it with the flat of Cerberus. "Batter up!" he says. I tap the sand, signaling that I'm ready. He throws the rock and I swing at it with all my strength. I connect, and the rock is sent flying with more force than anyone can ever throw. It hits the terrorist in the back, and lodges into his back. "Alright, direct hit!" I say. The terrorist yells out in pain and rushes towards me. I take my sword and rush at him as well. When we meet, I slide under him and cut his chest open. I then flip around and stab Cerberus through the rock, pushing both the flaming rock and Cerberus through his body, killing him. "Here's another soul for you, Death," I say. "Damn, that was a hard fight," Ryan says as he regroups with me. "It was, but it's over now. Let's see how close we are now." I say. Ryan pulls up his map and shows me where we are. "Alright, bout two or three more hours and we'll be at this bastard's place. Unless he knows we're coming, then he's probably setting up traps and... wait, what's that smell?" He asks. He turns around to see me burning the corpse of the dead terrorist. "What the fuck, Jason?" He asks. "If Orion comes out one night and sees the corpse, he'll know we're on our way to him, and quick. No corpse, no evidence." I say and brush my hands together. "Anyway, let's get a move on. I want to get to his place before sundown tomorrow." I say, roll out my sleeping mat, and lie down.

     I'm back at Death's tree. He's sitting under it, and I go join him. "Thanks for that soul earlier." He says. "No problem, anything to get Elena back," I say. Death chuckles and stands up. "You want to see her?" He says. "Sure," I say. He ruffles around in his cloak and pulls out an orb. "This is her soul. If I say her name, she will pass on into whichever fate has deemed her worthy." He says. He places the orb on the ground and it puffs up in smoke. Then, it shows Mira, dressed in the same clothes she was when she dies. She's smiling. I smile too, knowing that I'm going to be the one to save that beautiful smile. "Thanks, Death," I say. He takes her soul back, and he slowly fades away from my sight. Then the tree and scenery around me start to disappear into nothing.