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Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Prologue
Date: 25 October 2003, 4:08 AM

Prologue

The lush jungle environment was any person's weakness. When trying to sneak up on someone, the loose twigs and clustered bushes did not help the individual or individuals trying to move stealthy through the area. During the night, visibility was poor and it often rained. On planet Aries, it usually always rained. Today however, Master Sergeant Colin Thompson felt lucky and was also hoping their luck would hold. He was crouched low behind a fallen tree trunk on an elevated area of the jungle. His S2 AM sniper rifle was up at his shoulder and he squinted is right eye, allowing his vision to be more focused in his left eye. He looked through the scope of his sniper rifle and sighted it on the large entrance of an old Forerunner facility. He raised his left hand and made a fist. The five other humans behind him fanned out around the fallen tree, their weapons up and shouldered. Colin put his hand back on the firing trigger and waited.

It was believed that the Andromeda galaxy had been the birth place of the Forerunner species and their deadly creation; The Flood. Because the UNSC wished to colonize this galaxy, they had sent out large dispatch groups of their military forces in order to secure every planet in the system. It just so happened that Colin and the Shadow Ops II squad were ordered to investigate Aries, a planet that had very little land and a lot of water. Because of this, it rained a lot. Colin had already gone through two pairs of socks. His third pair was soaked completely, thanks to the swamp First Lieutenant Fredrick "Shadow" Owens had made them go through earlier.

The jungle that surrounded Colin reminded him a lot about Nigeria, the jungle that the original Shadow Ops squad had been ordered to explore. Memories flooded his mind suddenly, and he saw his old commanding officer, Lieutenant Pearson and three other humans disappear in an enormous explosion caused by a Jackhammer rocket launcher. Colin shook his head quickly, pushing the vision out of his head.

"Shade, you okay?" asked Fredrick. Colin looked up and nodded, then returned to looking through his scope. It was still sighted onto the entrance of the facility, which hadn't changed much. Colin was about to order the all clear, when three individuals crossed his line of vision. The sniper increased the zoom and aimed at the deformed head of an Flood combat form. The infested Elite looked at the two infested humans following it. The three grotesques stood in a tight triangle for a moment, before walking back inside. Colin dropped low from the tree and crouched near Fredrick.

"Flood contacts, three on patrol" he said. Owens nodded, and then whistled, ordering the other members of the Shadow Ops II squad over to him. Four men materialized out of the jungle, wearing complete jungle camouflage uniforms and make up. Colin supported himself with his sniper rifle and stared at the young faces looking at him and Owens.

Lance Corporal Jamie Fisher was there team medic. He usually used the MA5B assault rifle and the MA7B Battle rifle, with his M6D pistol as backup. The man had the largest combat pack strapped to his back among the squad, since it carried all of his medical supplies and extra gear for himself. His codename was Spirit, just like Fredrick's had been.

Corporal Johnny Colbourne chewed on a wad of tobacco, a pair of SMG 500s in his hands. He wore a bandanna and a combat cap on his head. He was also an asshole. The man was obedient, but he had a bad attitude. He was also there heavy weapons/support expert. The SMG 500s and the MA5B assault rifle were his choice of weapons. His codename was Death.

Johnny's trusted friend and tag along was Corporal Andrew Kreutz Kamp. The man was German and had the accent to prove it. He didn't have that bad of an attitude and was very friendly, but he laughed at every single stupid joke Johnny Colbourne said. He was demolitions, carrying there teams Jackhammer rocket launcher on his back. Inside his pack, were four extra rocket packages. If Corporal Fisher's bag was big, Andrew's bag was heavy. However, he was an extremely big man, and never complained. His codename was Wraith.

The quiet one of the team reminded Colin of himself, during Shadow Ops I. He however talked, but did it rarely. Corporal Todd Maddox was the youngest, and was there tech specialist. Most marine's hated technicians, but Todd had an air about him, that gave the impression that he was an all around cool guy, which he was. He didn't talk much around his friends and usually talked with his commanding officers. He pretty much copied Jamie Fisher in choice of weapons, but his pack was smaller. His codename: Specter.

Finally, there leader and Colin's close friend, First Lieutenant Fredrick Owens. The man had been the Shadow Ops I medic, but had proven to be a capable leader during the training of Shadow Ops II, so was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant. This didn't bother Colin at all. Although he had starting talking again, he didn't like being in charge. He was quite happy with his rank and overall team position. Owens used the MA7B Battle rifle as his primary weapon, but had the assault rifle for a backup. His codename was Shadow.

Colin had kept his old status as team sniper. His aim only got better every day. He had never missed since the death of his Shadow Ops I teammates. He had the MA7B Battle rifle for his main weapon, but used the S2 AM sniper rifle. His codename was still Shade. The team all sat silent, looking at Fredrick, who made sure no one heard them.

"All right, we got Flood forms all over this bloody place from the looks of it. A patrol of three out front, so that shouldn't be hard. Schematics show that this place isn't so big. We kill the patrol, and then move inside, clearing out whatever lies within. Shade will take point, Wraith picks up the rear. Clear?" he said. The team nodded. Colin stood up and shouldered an M90 shotgun. For this particular mission, the Shadow Ops II squad all used M90 shotguns as their primary weapon; because the Flood combat forms couldn't be taken out easily by their assault and battle rifles. Colin leapt high over the tree trunk and rushed forward, keeping himself low. The trio of Flood forms had their back to him. Colin motioned to his right with his hand, then to his left. Corporals Fisher and Kreutz Kamp and Lieutenant Owens crouched near the main entrance, while Colin, Maddox and Colbourne rushed to the patrol team. Colin stuck the end of his shotgun into the back of the infested Elite and fired. The top half of the combat form exploded, showering him with green bile and blood. The other two forms turned, but Maddox and Colbourne fired their own shotguns before the Flood had a chance to react. The three humans stood over the corpses for a moment, then rushed to the entrance.

"Shit, they heard us" Owens said over the radio. Colin rushed over to his leader, to find them firing their shotguns furiously into the long tunnel that lead inside the entrance. Small groups of Flood combat forms were rushing up to the three humans. Colin quickly crouched on the other side of the opening and fired his own shotgun. Two Flood combat forms fell from the single rounds. Colbourne and Maddox stood around him, firing their own shotguns, while Owens and his group reloaded. Colin stood and began walking down the tunnel, firing at the other Flood forms that were just arriving. Corporal Colbourne and Maddox fired as well, following him down the opening. After reloading, Owens, Fisher and Kreutz Kamp ran to catch up.

"Cover fire" Colin yelled, as he took a knee to reload. Corporal Colbourne also knelt, but Maddox fired what was left in his shotgun, allowing Colin and Johnny to reload. Owens and the others caught up and fired as well. The squad was positioned inside the large holding cell of the facility, since that was what it was designed for. Majority of the Flood forms were gone, but what was left were now dead. Colin scanned the room with his shotgun. The gross smell of rotting flesh reached his nose and he quickly covered it with a bandanna he had around his neck. However, the smell meant dead Flood forms, which was a good sign. Piles of the corpses lay in the room, which was almost completely pitch black, but thanks to the bright sun that shone onto Aries's surface, light illuminated most of the room. The team's flashlights explored the darker corners. Owens cleared his throat.

"That was good, now, let's get moving. Death, Wraith, cover one entrance. Spirit, Shade, the other one. I and Specter will plant the charges" he explained. Colin looked over at Todd Maddox, who was reaching into his pack and grabbed a non-nuclear HADES BOMB. The lone mine had the power to bring this entire structure to the ground.

While Colin and Corporal Fisher waited at one of the entrances, Owens and Maddox planted the weapon. Fisher held a cigarette in his hand and inhaled the toxic fumes. He coughed slightly and offered Colin one, who shook his head.

"I don't smoke, why should you?" he asked the medic. Fisher shrugged.

"Helps keep me warm sir, I find it quite cold" he said. Colin nodded. The dampness in the air made the interior of the jungle extremely cold. He noticed, but because he had come prepared, he wore three layers of clothing. He was actually sweating. He looked around the jungle, taking in the last of its air. Soon after the mine was planted and detonated, they would be off this planet, since this was the last Forerunner facility on it. No sooner did this thought exit his mind, and then Lieutenant Owens yelled into the team radio "Fire in the hole!" Colin quickly snapped to attention and dashed forward with incredible speed. Corporal Fisher tossed his cigarette, and rushed after the sniper. Colin leapt high and hide behind an extremely large boulder. He had used the same boulder a lot earlier to spy on the facility for a few hours. It was very tall and wide, and would provide good protection from the explosion. Fisher came to a stop and hide behind the boulder as well, panting heavily. A countdown began in the team's radio.

"3...2...1..." An enormous bang entered their ears, followed by the whole ground shaking as the mine detonated. The Forerunner facility began to crack and crumble, before finally bursting into a thousand pieces, letting the fires within outside. A small shockwave expanded out from the destroyed facility. Colin felt it hit the boulder, and then move over them. His ears were ringing and his vision clouded by the dust and ash that was slowly covering them. Colin shook his head, relieving himself of the clouded vision and walked into the open. There was a huge crater in the ground where the facility once was. Large chunks of the metal used to create it sizzled all over the jungle, and some even burned. Colin looked over at the other members of the squad, walked out of a dried up creek bed. Owens gave him a thumbs up sign. Colin grinned and returned it. The squad assembled inside the crater. They waited there for a few minutes, making sure no unexpected visitors came to see what happened. A few animals that looked a lot like monkey's screamed at them, but other than that, no one showed up.

"All right, mission complete, let's head back to the LZ" Owens said as they climbed out of the crater. The squad fanned out in an organized line and began jogging through the jungle. They had arrived here on a Pelican dropship, which they had landed in a valley several kilometers away. However, the Shadow Ops II squad made the journey in less than ten minutes. They arrived into the valley, panting and sweating heavily. Colin put his hands onto the back of his head and stood straight. He glanced over at Fisher, who had collapsed onto the ground.

"Still cold?" he asked. Fisher laughed and gave Colin the middle finger. The sniper shook his head and slowly walked onboard the Pelican, the rest of the team slowly following him. Owens already sat in the pilot's chair. Slowly, the low rumble of the ship's engines entered their ears. Colin strapped himself to one of the seats in the troop bay and held onto the straps as the Pelican troop bay ramp closed and the ship slowly hovered above the ground. Owens accelerated the engines and they roared into the air, leaving the jungle behind them. The deep recesses of space greeted them. Colin climbed into the co-pilot's seat and watched as they approached the large UNSC cruiser Scythe. The large portside docking bay was open, and Owens steered the Pelican towards it.

"This is Shadow Ops II, request permission to dock" Colin said into the radio.

"Roger that Shadow Ops, welcome aboard" the communications officer of the Scythe answered. The docking bay became larger as Owens pushed the engines so that they sped up. Eventually, the docking bay's anti-grav generators took control of the ship and guided her in. The bay doors slowly closed behind the ship, as it was positioned and secured into a small parking port. The ramp opened and they all clambered out. A group of marines and a few medics greeted them, and assisted them with their gear. Colin noticed Captain Warren approach them, smiling his boyish smile. The squad saluted and the Captain returned it.

"Well done down there" he began. Owens nodded.

"Thank you sir, are there any other facilities on Aries?" he asked.

"No" Warren answered.

"Will we exploring a nearby planet for more facilities?" Owens asked again.

"No" Warren said again. Owens raised an eyebrow.

"What's our course sir?" he inquired.

"Earth, Lieutenant, we're going to Earth" he said. Colin raised an eyebrow and looked at Owens, who looked at him as well.

"Why Earth sir, there's dozens of planets still unchecked...is Earth under attack?" Owens said.

"Sorry gentlemen, I can't tell you why, but I can tell you that Earth isn't under attack. Vice Admiral Casar wishes to speak with you. That's basically all I can say. We're underway right now and we'll get there in two days. Relax; you've had a long, hard month. Your quarters are free, you can rest for now" he said. Owens nodded and the Shadow Ops II squad saluted. Captain Warren returned it and walked off down the hall. Owens turned around to look at his squad.

"This is very unexpected. I'll try and find out more information, although I doubt that will go well. You lot go to your rooms and remain there, I'll brief you individually. Get some rest, like the Captain said, you all deserve it" Owens said. The team nodded and dispersed into the ship, heading for their individual rooms. Colin walked up to Owens.

"Something's not right sir, if some Admiral wanted to congratulate us, he wouldn't have us go to him, he would come to us" Colin said. Owens nodded and lowered his head.

"I feel the same way, but Warren won't tell us anything. We're just going to have to wait" he said, and began walking down the hall to his room. "Game of poker tonight?" he asked, turning around. Colin nodded.

"I let everyone else now" he said. Owens grinned and saluted. Colin returned it and the two men parted. Whatever was in store for them at Earth, Shade wasn't looking forward to it and he feared it.

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter One
Date: 26 October 2003, 6:23 AM

Chapter One

"Deal them out."

"Okay, here we go." The Shadow Ops II squad sat around a table in the bunk room of Lieutenant Owens. They all looked like Owens, who shuffled a full deck of playing cards and dealt out two cards to each of the squad members. Because poke was too complicated for them at this time of night, they had switched with Black Jack. Colin took his two cards and looked at them. Showing his team was a ten of hearts, and the one card facing down was a nine of spades. He nodded and watched Johnny Colbourne bust immediately after calling for another card.

"Damnit" he said, throwing his cards onto the table. The rest of the team laughed. Kreutz Kamp stayed, while Todd Maddox called for another one. Grinning, he stayed. Colin looked at Maddox. The grin on his face gave away the fact that he had a winner. The sniper shrugged and called for another card. Owens gave him an ace of spades. Colin nodded, and then stayed. The team medic, Jamie Fisher busted as well, shaking hands with Colbourne.

"Welcome to the club" Johnny said. This brought more laughs from the table. Owens flipped his cards over, revealing twenty. He nodded and looked at the other players. Kreutz Kamp swore in German and flipped his cards over. He had twenty. Maddox looked at Colin who grinned and flipped over his cards. Todd nodded, and then showed the group his cards. He had twenty-one.

"Son of a bitch" Owens said, laughing. Colin leaned back and threw a card at the tech specialist. Maddox laughed, and then nodded.

"Deal them again" he said. Owens shuffled the cards. Colbourne looked up from the table.

"What's going on Lieutenant? Where we going?" he asked. Owens looked at him for a moment, and then continued shuffling.

"Well, we know we're going to Earth and we know some Admiral wants to speak with us. The confusion here is, why wouldn't the admiral come out here to congratulate us on a job well done, since there are dozens of Flood facilities still in that galaxy. So, that narrows it down to a two things that I've come up with. We're being transferred somewhere else, or we're being shut down" he explained. The Lieutenant's last sentence made everyone go quiet. Colbourne shook his head and sat back.

"Why the hell would they shut us down? Who would replace us?" he demanded.

"Apparently, the new Spartan series is due to be ready soon" Owens said. That didn't make Colbourne happy.

"Douche bags" he whispered. Fisher and Maddox simply kept their heads down. Andrew also shook his head.

"Vat vill become of us?" he inquired. Owens shook his head.

"Well, if the Spartan series comes out, we won't be needed, and basically, we'll have two choices. Fight with the Marine Corps, or go do some desk job at ONI" he said. Colbourne chuckled sinisterly and looked up at the ceiling.

"Gay man, just gay" he said. Fisher looked up.

"Change of subject here boys...what does gay mean to you?" he asked. This brought laughs from the table. Owens looked at him.

"What are you saying their Jamie?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. More laughs erupted from them. Colin wiped his eyes, and smiled.

"In my mind, the true meaning of gay is happy, at least that's what the dictionary says" he said. Colbourne lighted a cigarette.

"Liking the same sex I thought" he said through the nicotine stick in his mouth.

"That's a homosexual, which means liking the same sex" Fisher said, also lighting a cigarette. Owens nodded.

"I feel quite odd talking about this, but what the hell, there's nothing else. I shorten homosexual too homo" he said.

"Yeah, most people do that" Colbourne said.

"Basically what I'm saying is; if someone calls you gay, all you gotta say is, yeah, I am happy thanks" Fisher said with a shrug. A puff of smoke exited his mouth. Colin coughed and waved it away.

"But if there are a dumbfuck, and don't know what the hell you're talking about, you simply say something like, if you mean someone liking the same sex, that's a homosexual" he said. The group agreed.

"Talking about liking the same sex" Maddox whispered. They broke out laughing again. Colin grabbed for his cup of beer, but it was empty.

"Okay, who's getting more drinks?" he said. No one spoke. Owens chuckled and put in his fist. The rest of the group complied.

"Rock, paper, scissors" they chanted. Fisher, Maddox and Colbourne choose scissors, while the other three squad members choose rock. The three losers laughed and turned to each other. They pumped their fists three times, and then extended them into the three choices. Fisher held out his hand like a paper, while both Maddox and Colbourne had scissors. He swore and stood.

"All right, what does everyone want?" he asked, as he reached for another cigarette. Colin shook his head and snatched the pack away. "What the fuck man, give them back" he demanded. Colin shook his head.

"You smoke like a fucking chimney. If you ain't careful, we aren't gonna have a fucking medic. You off all people should know smoking this shit is bad" he said. Fisher lunged for the pack, but missed.

"Fuck off man, give them back" he said. Colin shook his head.

"You're quitting, now" he said. Fisher shook his head.

"Fuck you" he said. The group laughed, as did Colin.

"Okay okay, get the bears, I'll give this back" he said.

"Hell no, give them back and I'll get the beers" Fisher said. Colin shook his head. Fisher finally sighed and walked off. The squad laughed again. The medic came back with six beers in his hands. He put them onto the table and sat down. Everyone looked at him. He looked up from the cards he was looking at.

"What? Oh fuck" he said, remembering his cigarettes. Colin laughed and tossed them back. Fisher nodded.

"Thank God" he sighed, taking one out and lighting it. Colbourne put his away and breathed in the toxic fumes.

"We gonna keep playing?" he asked.

"Vone more game" Andrew suggested. They nodded and Owens dealt out the cards. Colin ended up winning with twenty-one, while Colbourne, Maddox and Owens busted out. Owens stood up.

"Well, I'm going to call it a night gentlemen" he said.

"Chickening out there Shadow?" asked Johnny. Owens laughed.

"Nah, getting disgusted by your breath" he said as Johnny blew smoke from his mouth. The squad laughed and Colbourne's face turned red. They cleaned up the table, quickly finishing their drinks in the process. The four Corporals said their goodbyes to Colin and Fredrick, then walked out into the hall of the UNSC Scythe, heading for their own rooms. The sniper and Lieutenant cleaned up slightly, and then sat around, drinking another bottle of beer each.

"Think we're really being shut down?" Colin asked, putting his beer on the table. Owens looked up from his own bottle.

"Been bugging me for awhile Colin. I don't see the logic in doing such a thing. We were the ones that started this campaign against the Flood, back during the first Shadow Ops. Why can't they transfer the Spartans to fight off the last of the Covenant factions, and have us kill off the Flood, or vice versa. Splitting up the Spartans wouldn't be the wisest thing to do" he said, his eyes glazing over for a moment. A vision of a huge tidal wave of Flood running towards Colin and the first Shadow Ops squad entered his mind, but the sniper pushed it away.

"What happens if they do shut us down?" he wondered. Owens shrugged.

"We've been together now for two years, we are all good friends and enjoy each other's company. If we get shut down, I'm leaving the UNSC military forces. Get a job somewhere" he said. Colin nodded and finished his beer.

"The six of us could stick together. I doubt any of us want to fight with the Marine Corps. We could get a house somewhere and live there, look for jobs, wouldn't be so bad" he said, standing. Owens finished his beer.

"No, it wouldn't, but we still want to continue fighting, so let's hope that's what happens" he said, finishing the conversation. Colin nodded and dumped their two beer bottles into the garbage. He went to the bathroom and undressed into a pair of UNSC issued pajamas. They were grey, and because it was usually cold on board most UNSC ships, they were very thick. Owens also got changed. However, he stayed up a bit late, reading a book. Colin turned in however, the dreams of the Shadow Ops I squad quickly returning to haunt him...

Two days later...

Colin stood with the other Shadow Ops II squad in their dress uniforms. They each wore black suits and ties, medals covering the left side of their jackets. Owens had a single insignia bar above his medals, indicating he was a field officer. A single Pelican dropship had been prepared for them. Slowly, the troop bay ramp opened and they climbed in. As Colin strapped himself in, Captain Warren stood near the entrance.

"Pleasure meeting you boys, thanks for all your help, goodbye" he said, as the ramp began to close. The squad all eyed each other, but saluted the Captain anyway. The Pelican was detached from its parking lot and it zoomed out of the docking bay. It soared out of the large UNSC spaceport outside of New Washington. A large group of dropships had descended to this spaceport from Scythe. The UNSC ship had entered Earth's orbit yesterday, and had awaited clearance to send down its passengers. The Shadow Ops II squad had their own Pelican, unlike the other marines who were forced to share their Pelicans.

The large dropship soared in the sunny skies. It was summer time, making the land below scorching hot. A few sky cars flew beneath them in the straight lines outlined by the air markers. However, UNSC military ships didn't have to travel along the airway.

Washington DC had been expanded so much that it was renamed New Washington. It was a huge circle city, with large buildings and separate divisions, like residential, industrial, etc. The Pelican soared through these buildings, weaving in and out from them. The streets below were crowded with people and the regular road cars. The dropship slowly moved in towards a marked landing pad, on top of a very thick, yet not so tall building. A welcoming committee of decorated officers and a few marine officers were waiting, as the dropship landed successfully onto the pad and the troop bay ramp opened. Colin climbed out first and straightened his jacket. The rest of the squad followed, squinting into the sunlight and looking at the men and women waiting for them. Owens was the last to get out. He cracked his neck and massaged it slightly, then walked towards the officers waiting for them. The squad followed him in a single file line. The officers waiting for them also formed a line. Owens stopped in front of the first officer. The man smiled and offered his hand.

"Lieutenant Colonel Alan Brown, Helljumper Commanding Officer" he said. Owens took his hand and shook it. They did this with the eleven other officers waiting in line. The last man smiled and shook Fredrick's hand.

"Vice Admiral Daniel Casar, Head of the Office of Naval Intelligence. Please, follow me, we have much to discuss" he said, walking to the elevator that was waiting for them. Owens glanced back at Colin briefly, who rolled his eyes. They then followed the Admiral into the elevator ramp, the other officers behind them. Slowly, the extremely large elevator began descending into the building. Admiral Casar attempted to talk with Owens, but the Shadow Ops II Lieutenant didn't say much and pretended to listen. He didn't have to pretend long however, since the elevator stopped after a few minutes. Casar walked to another door and opened it. The large group walked down the white tiled and wallpapered hall. The Admiral eventually reached a large boardroom, which he entered. Everyone else followed them inside, the doors closing behind them.

There was a row of seats that were elevated slightly, so that they looked down on two more rows of seats. The Admiral and his officers walked up this elevated part of the room, and sat down, taking out file folders and putting them on the table that was around them. Owens took a seat, facing up at the Admiral, who smiled down at him and the other squad members.

"Well, welcome to Earth. I'm sure you're all happy to be back" he started off, his voice booming through the microphone. No one answered, but the Admiral seemed to have expected that. "We're here today to discuss the outcome of the Shadow Ops II squad. Starting from left to right, would you please state your name, rank and job" he said. Owens stood up.

"First Lieutenant Fredrick Owens, team leader" he stated. Colin stood.

"Master Sergeant Colin Thompson, team sniper"

"Corporal Jamie Fisher, team medic"

"Corporal Andrew Kreutz Kamp, demolitions"

"Corporal Johnny Colbourne, support"

"Corporal Todd Maddox, tech specialist." Casar and the others wrote down some notes onto papers, and then the Admiral nodded.

"Thank you, please sit" he said. They complied. "Gentlemen, your battle records and statistics are here now in front of me and I'm sure you've read them yourselves. Let me start off by congratulating you all on a superb performance in the field of battle. Your statistics almost match up with those of the Spartans. Now, here is why I've called you all here" he said. Colin sat forward, waiting to see what was going to happen.

"As you all know, the Master Chief of the Spartan-IIs has retired, which was why we created the Shadow Ops. However, the idea behind the Shadow Ops team was that it would simply be a replacement, until the Spartan-IIIs were trained. Well gentlemen, the Spartan-IIIs have been trained and are ready for combat, which means that we no longer need the Shadow Ops" he said. Colin closed his eyes and leaned back. He could hear Johnny Colbourne cracking his fingers. Owens stood.

"Why sir, why aren't we needed?" he asked.

"Lieutenant, the Covenant threat is over, the Marine Corps can finish off what's left of them, what remains is the Flood. Because of this, we will send the Spartan-IIIs to finish off the Flood termination. That basically leaves no room for the Shadow Ops" he said. Colin stood.

"How come we can't help out the Marine Corps in taking out the Covenant?" he asked.

"Because the Office of Naval Intelligence cannot pay for the Shadow Ops and Spartans, Master Sergeant. The costs of credits required to make the two of you and continue making you is too much, which is why we must shut one down" he said. Colin sat down and could see Jamie Fisher's hands clenched into fists. Owens stood as Colin sat down.

"What happens to us?" he asked.

"Well, you have three choices gentlemen. Quit the UNSC; continue working for the Office of Naval Intelligence, and by that, I mean working in the science division. Or, you could join the Marine Corps. Your skills would definitely help them out" he said. Owens looked at his men, who were all doing their best to keep their anger under control. The Admiral continued. "This comes to another point of us gathering here. What do you and your men wish to do?" he asked. Owens continued looking at everyone. Colin looked at his Lieutenant and held up one finger behind his seat. The other four squad members did the same. Owens nodded.

"We quit" he said. The Admiral raised an eyebrow.

"Quit? But Lieutenant, you realize that by quitting, you will no longer be a part of the UNSC" he said.

"No shit" Owens growled. Casar's eyes went wide.

"What did you say?" he demanded. Owens shook his head and smiled.

"Nothing, I have nothing to say to you. We're done" he said, glaring at the man. Owens stood up and walked towards the exit. Colin quickly followed him, the rest of the squad doing the same. Johnny Colbourne extended his middle finger to the officers watching them go, then he slammed the door as he left, cracking the thick glass that protected the people inside. The squad went to the elevator and headed down to the lobby. Owens looked at them all.

"Did you all have bank accounts before joining the UNSC?" he asked. Colin thought back and remembered the account his parents had made him. He nodded at Owens. Colbourne, Fisher and Maddox nodded as well.

"Good. As soon as we get out of here, we head to the nearest bank, withdraw some cash and buy us an apartment or something. We'll also need a change of clothes, so if possible, withdraw everything" he said. The five men nodded. The elevator came to a stop and opened. They walked out into the lobby and made for the main entrance. A security guard sitting behind a desk stood up.

"Hey! Stop those men!" he yelled, running around the desk and coming at them. Two more guards appeared and rushed towards them, guns drawn. Owens quickly dashed forward, running out of the building.

"Run! Go!" he yelled. Colin and the others followed suite, however, Johnny punched one of the guards in the face, before leaving as well. The guard's nose broke on impact and he fell to the floor, trying to stop the bleeding. The squad rushed down the sidewalk, pushing people out of the way.

"Military emergency, move!" Owens was yelling ahead of them. This made the people move, as the six well dressed officers rushed past them. They stopped at the corner of a street and spotted a bank. They crossed the street quickly, avoiding the looks from the Washington Police Officers directing traffic. They entered the bank and rushed to the terminal machines. Kreutz Kamp and Maddox stayed near the windows, watching out for any police or security forces coming towards them. Bank cards weren't needed, only a name and password. Colin remembered his password well, since it was his squad codename. He typed in "Shade" and his account opened.

"How much?" Owens called out.

"I got fifteen hundred, withdrawing all of it" Fisher said.

"Two thousand, I'll take out one thousand" said Colin.

"Oh baby, fifty thousand credits here" said Colbourne. The squad looked at him and he grinned.

"I was a criminal before I joined the UNSC, can't imagine the amount of money people will give you for weapons and jewelry" he said. Owens only had three thousand. Once there pockets were weighed down with the small credits, they walked out and found the closest apartment. Luckily for them, it was the best one in the city and had very affordable prices. Purchasing one went by quickly. They all signed a few forms and each paid the owner of the building one hundred dollars, to make up for the cost of the apartment and the taxes that they would have to pay for the next few months. Paying the man four hundred dollars, meant four months worth of no taxes. They would hopefully be out of here by then. They took the elevator to level fifty-one and found their room; 51X. They opened the door and walked into the spacious room.

When the door, opened, it revealed the apartments main living room, with some couches and chairs, all focused on a TV stand. Small stairs led to the kitchen and table, and then there were doors posted around the room, that led to the four bedrooms. They decided to alternate as to who slept where each night. Owens dumped all of his cash onto the table, as did everyone else.

"Okay, here's what we're going to need...before anyone goes anywhere, put on different clothes, or take off the medals on your suits. Spirit and Specter, get some food that will last us a few weeks. Death, you and Wraith, get some appliances. TV, computers, anything. Shade and I will get some extra clothing. We meet back here, no later than 1500 hours" Owens said quickly. The team nodded and disappeared into the rooms, either finding new clothes or taking their medals off. They all came out looking different.

"Avoid the police and other type of UNSC personnel. Get what we need, then get back here. We'll decide on what to do from there" he said. The squad all nodded and left the room together, locking the door behind them....

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Two
Date: 1 November 2003, 7:31 AM

Chapter Two

"Move it to the left"

"Watch my back, I'm coming through"

"Shiza! My foot!"

"Take it easy, keep it coming...okay! Stop!" Wincing in pain and stress, Colin Thompson released the large flat-screen 72" TV screen onto the makeshift TV stand. He panted heavily and collapsed onto one of the couches inside their new apartment. Andrew Kreutz Kamp and Johnny Colbourne sat next to him, tired, but laughing at what they purchased. Andrew held his toe in agony. Colin shoved him.

"Suck it up" he said. Andrew shoved him back, but Colin stepped on his foot and he backed off. The ex-UNSC Shadow Ops members all laughed at Andrew, who limped up to the kitchen to grab a band aid. When he returned, Fredrick Owens stood in front of them.

"Well guys, we've got a place to stay, we have money, and we have each other. We're no longer in the UNSC, we're on our own. Are you guys willing to stay here and live together?" he asked, looking at everyone. There was a moment of silence, as Fredrick stared at every member of his squad. Johnny sat up, grinning and nodded.

"Awesome, I'm in" he said. The others didn't complain either. They had left their lives behind to join the USNC. They had nowhere to go, nowhere to stay. This was home. Owens nodded.

"Okay then, we're no longer part of that fucked up Office of Intelligence, but we'll continue to follow the chain of command we followed while being Shadow Ops. I'm in charge, objections?" he asked again. Johnny Colbourne remained silent here, but Colin got the same look of approval from each member of the squad, including Colbourne. Colin stood up and saluted the ex-medic from the first Shadow Ops squad.

"We're with you Shadow" he said. It was a touching moment, as the other four squad members stood and saluted Owens, who blushed and nodded.

"All right then, let's go over what we purchased" he said, walking up to the kitchen. Colin sat down.

"Groceries are unpacked and stored throughout the cupboards. Spirit and Specter scored well, got everything that we need. That'll probably last us a month or two" he began, looking at a list of purchased goods. There was a moment of silence, as everyone else looked through the bought goods.

"Vell, ve got a very nice TV" Andrew said, pointing to the 100 pound appliance. The whole group laughed.

"Nice capture there dude" Todd Maddox said, shaking Johnny's hand.

"TV didn't cost much, but this computer that Specter already set up did cost a bit" Colbourne said, pointing to the small computer. It was fixed on a large desk which they had found on the road. The desk was in good condition, and only required a quick cleaning, since it had been on the streets for a few days. Todd had set it up already, and was sitting at it already.

"What are you doing mate?" Jamie Fisher asked, looking over at him.

"Deleting our ID records from ONI" Maddox answered, staring straight at the large monitor.

"Nice, good thinking" Owens said, walking over to him. "I doubt we broke any laws, but Death could've gotten in some trouble, punching that guard" he said again, grinning over at Johnny, who shrugged.

"He got in my way, what can I say?" he asked.

"Poet and didn't even know it" Colin murmured, causing the others to laugh.

"It's a good idea nevertheless, since I'm sure we all have the same idea in mind for ONI" Owens said, standing straight and looking at everyone.

"Revenge" whispered Andrew, who was still poking his toe. Johnny's hands were clenched into fists and he nodded. Colin grinned evilly.

"We'll worry about a plan later. What else did we buy?" Owens said, changing the subject.

"Got a radio, a few CDs, CD player, some blinds for these windows, bunch of other shit" said Johnny. Owens nodded.

"Clothes were hard, but we got some pants, jackets, a few shirts, undergarments, socks, if it doesn't fit you, trying something else on. Were all roughly the same weight and size" he said, picking up a pair of jeans. Johnny grabbed another pair of pants and held them up to his legs.

"Do they make my butt too big?" he asked. Colin burst out laughing, and threw a pair of socks at him.

"Lose some weight" he said, causing the others to laugh even harder. Owens wiped his eyes and put the jeans down.

"Let's get this crap away. Spirit and I will put the clothes away. Wraith, fix that toe. Death and Shade, I want you two to go through the appliances and set up what you can today" Owens ordered, picking up large handfuls of clothing and walking into the bedrooms. Maddox remained at the computer, studying ONI readouts that were scrolling across the screen. Andrew limped into one of the bedrooms and laid down on the bed. Colin turned and watched Johnny sit in front of the large TV. He grinned at Colin and flicked the receiver. The TV screen activated and sound blared into the room. Johnny's face was filled with delight and he laughed, as Colin shook his head and walked to him. He gave the man a thumbs-up sign.

"Very nice" he said, crossing his arms and watching the screen flicker. Most households had projector screens set up, but since they were more expensive then regular TVs, Johnny and Andrew got this one. Colin wasn't complaining.

"Come on, let's get this crap unpacked and set it up" he said, walking over to the table, which was still filled with bags.

Vice Admiral Casar sat in the exact same conference room where he had spoken with the Shadow Ops II squad. In front of him were various directions and managers from the various divisions within the Office of Naval Intelligence.

"Okay people, let's settle down" he said into the microphone. Immediately, the people standing around sat and looked up at Casar. He leaned back slightly, looking through some notes. He didn't really know what to say and was thankful when Lieutenant Colonel Jim Campbell cleared his throat.

"Do you all know why you're here?" he asked. A spokesperson for the entire assembled group stood up.

"Some of us do, but others aren't exactly filled in completely" she said. Campbell nodded and looked over at Casar, who leaned forward.

"Yesterday, at around 1300 hours, myself and the elected representatives sat here and told the Shadow Ops II squad that they were going to be shut down, so that the Spartan-IIIs could take over. Well ladies and gentlemen, they didn't take it too well. The choices given to them were work for the Office of Naval Intelligence, join the Marine Corps, or quit the office and the UNSC military forces. They choose to leave the UNSC, and walked right out. Their attitude leaving this room wasn't very good either. I tried to have security apprehend them, but they were gone before they could do anything. One of the officers received a broken nose from the squad's heavy weapons expert" he explained, shaking his head. An uneasy silence fell over the assembled people, who stared at each other in disbelief. Finally, one man stood up.

"Excuse me sir, but why is that such a big deal? They left, so let's leave it and go on to something else" he said. Casar shook his head.

"It's not that easy I'm afraid. Each member of the Shadow Ops II squad has large amounts of knowledge, of the various experiments we conduct here at the office and if such information is gained by the public, we could have riots, large protests, stuff that's happened in the past and we don't wish to happen again" he said.

"What we do here isn't exactly bad" the same man said.

"Experimenting on Covenant bodies and trying to make super hybrids out of them. Radical protest groups would launch a full complaint against us and get more to rally with them. We're just worried about classified information being leaked out into the public" the Admiral explained. The man fell silent, but the woman beside him stood.

"What do we do?" she asked.

"Well, that's why I've called you all here. What are we going to do with them?" Casar asked, crossing his arms and leaning back. No one spoke, but Casar expected this. A few people coughed uncomfortably, others merely stared at the floor or ceiling. The Chief of the Washington DC police forces stood up.

"We could hire someone to keep an eye on them" he suggested.

"A shadow?" Casar asked. The Chief nodded, but Casar shook his head. "Those six men are trained in the arts of such methods of stalking and they know when they're being followed. A shadow isn't the answer."

"What if we somehow convince one of the members to go undercover for us?" Marine General Tyler Banton asked. Several of the gathered people began chatting out loud about this proposal. Casar shook his head again.

"Each one of them most likely has a huge amount of hatred towards us, and approaching one and asking him to work for us again, wouldn't work at all. In fact, he would tell the rest of the squad and we could be faced with terrorist acts against us" he explained. The General however shook his head also.

"There are such body movements one can recognize to see whether or not the person agrees with someone or not. When Lieutenant Owens said they were out, I can tell you one hundred percent; one of the members did not want to leave and wished to choose something else. However, it was peer pressure that forced him to stand and leave" the General explained. More chattering started and even Casar was impressed.

"Which one are you talking about?" he asked, looking at the profile pictures of all six men. The General pointed to one. The Admiral nodded.

"Okay, get to work on him, see if he'll do it. If the squad does leak out information or plans to commit terrorist acts against us, we have a small chance to stop them" Casar explained. More talking continued, as people agreed with what the Admiral was saying. Casar stood. "This meeting is over. If our plan fails, we'll try Chief Lawley's idea of putting a shadow behind the shadows. Dismissed" he said. The group of people sitting below the Admiral stood up in unison and left in a single file line, still talking. Casar stood and collected his papers, then walked over to the General.

"The Shadow idea won't work at all. I want to make sure you get this kid and you make him work for us. Use any means necessary, and I mean any" he whispered into General Banton grinned and nodded.

"I'll have a report for you next week" he said and saluted. The Admiral returned it and then watched the General leave the room. Casar stood alone, listening to his steady heartbeat and breathing heavily. He laid down the profile pictures of each of the Shadow Ops II squad, and then pretended to shoot each picture in the head.

"Mess with ONI will you?" he growled, then threw the papers into the garbage and walked out.

Once again, the six men who made up the ex-ONI squad sat at the dinner table, a deck of cards spread out along the table. Smoke from cigarettes spiraled into the air, forcing Colin to inhale the fumes as he looked at his cards.

"Crap again" he whispered, taking a drink of his bottle of beer. Beside him, Andrew leaned over to look at his cards and chuckled.

"Very bad luck" he said, shaking his head. Colin punched him lightly in the arm, and then asked for another card. He added the numbers and counted twenty-two.

"Bullshit" he said, throwing the cards onto the table. The others laughed, but stopped as Andrew revealed twenty-one in his hand. Colin punched him again, as did Johnny who sat on the opposite side of him. The German laughed.

"Go avay" he chuckled. There was a moment of silence, as they all took another swig of their beers. Finally, Fredrick looked around the table.

"So, its revenge we want?" he asked. Johnny sat up.

"Fuck yeah man" he said. Both Fisher and Maddox grinned. Colin punched his fist into his hand. Andrew however was still marveling over all the money he had won. Owens nodded again. "What does everyone have in mind?" he asked. Maddox leaned forward, putting his cigarette out.

"I've been checking out internet maps about ONIs various governmental buildings they have here in DC. So far, I've found two federal banks, the actual ONI facility and a weapons factory" he said. Johnny grinned.

"Weapon's factory sounds good" he said. Maddox shook his head.

"That comes to my next point. The security at most of these buildings is tight. That factory you want Death has two divisions of Marines positioned there, in case someone tries to steal some of their weapons. The ONI facility is impossible, even with the knowledge we have, we don't have the equipment. The first bank and fucking huge and would be too hard to control, but this last bank is the one that interests me" he said. Owens spread his arms apart, throwing the cards and cigarette packages onto the floor.

"What do you got?" he asked the tech specialist. Maddox reached behind him and pulled out a small map, which he laid down on the table.

"Blueprints of the bank. It's located down on Avery Street, just by the stadium. The exterior of the building looks a lot like a worn down building, abandoned for years, but it's different on the inside. Main entrance leads to a large lobby area. Main desk with usually three secretaries and two security guards positioned on the wall. There are two doors in this lobby that lead to the manager's office and his assistance. Now, behind the desk is a barred door, which leads to the small storage area they have. There are two more offices back here, with two more security guards. We're looking at a total of nine hostages" he explained.

"What's in this place?" asked Johnny, chewing on a toothpick.

"This bank is used to house the various goods that the UNSC gets from rebel factions. It's also one of ONIs private bank accounts, loaded with cash. We're looking at maybe some diamonds, weapons, credits, lots of shit. That's all that I know off" he said.

"Nice" whispered Jamie Fisher.

"An operation like dis vouldn't require a lot of heavy firearms. M6D pistols and maybe a few assault rifles, piece of cake" Andrew said.

"What are the guards armed with?" Colin asked.

"MA2B assault rifles, M6D pistol as a backup. They usually wear Kevlar Type-II body armor. Two successful pistol rounds anywhere on the torso area will take them out" Maddox explained.

"Okay, we've got our target; we've sort of got some gear in mind. However, someone's bound to find out that something's up. Hostages?" Owens asked. There was a moment of silence, before Johnny cleared his throat.

"The desk clerks and managers. The guards either need to be put into submission or killed. I think killed would be better, but that's just me" he said.

"I agree" Colin said, nodding at Johnny.

"Okay, the next few days we'll use to gather what equipment we'll need and also devise a plan on how to get into that bloody place" Owens said, as he stood up and pushed his chair in. "I'm heading to bed for now, been a long fucking day" he said.

"Man, I vanted vone more game" Andrew whined, but received another punch in the arm by Colin.

"German bastard taking away all our money" he murmured, causing Andrew to laugh. Owens shook hands with all five of his men, and then walked to his bedroom. As the door closed, Johnny turned to look at them.

"Who gets the couch?" he asked. Everyone stared at each other for a moment, grinning. Johnny put his fist in, and the others followed.

"Rock, paper, scissors" they chanted. All four of them, except Colin choose rock. The sniper choose paper, meaning he would be on the couch.

"Holy shit, what are the fucking odds of that happening?" he said, shaking his head and walking to the couch. The others all laughed at him, as they split up into their separate rooms. Colin lay down onto the couch and slowly fell asleep, thinking about tomorrow and how busy it would be...

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Three
Date: 5 November 2003, 4:25 AM

Chapter Three

Colin slammed his foot onto the accelerator pedal of the civilian-class Warthog he and Johnny Colbourne had rented. Sitting beside him, Todd Maddox had a map out, and was tracing a road with his finger. In the back, Colbourne and Jamie Fisher sat silently, watching the buildings go by. Maddox looked up from his map.

"Our target should be in the old part of DC. Empty country area, right near the old football stadium" he said.

"Names Specter, give me some fucking street names" Colin said.

"And if I don't?" Maddox asked. Colin grinned and began swerving the Warthog back and forth on the road, ignoring the horns being beeped at him. Maddox held onto his seat.

"Okay! Okay! I was just fucking joking!" he yelled. Colin laughed and finally came to a stop. In the back, Fisher grabbed his stomach and quickly put his head out the window and puked up his breakfast onto the empty street.

"Aww, that's nasty man" Johnny said, trying to move away from Fisher as he continued to puke. Colin laughed again and nudged Maddox.

"Where am I going dude?" he asked him.

"Avery Street is where this bank is located. To get there, keep going straight, and then make a left at the lights" he said, trying to ignore Fisher, who was still hanging out the window. They reached the traffic lights quickly, which forced Fisher to get back inside, since two DC police patrol cars were positioned off to the side of the road, a small group of men gathered near the corner.

"What the fuck?" Johnny said out loud, looking at the cars. Five men stood in front of four DC police officers, who had their hands on their guns. The men were all wearing hoods and were making gestures at them officers. Colin shook his head.

"Fucking rebel protest" he said.

"Seriously?" asked Jamie Fisher, letting go of his stomach and looking over.

"Yeah, there's e-mails and reports of small protests all over DC and other cities" Maddox said, nodding his head as they turned the corner onto Avery Street.

"Straight down this street right?" Colin asked the tech specialist, who nodded.

"Yeah man, stop when we get close to the stadium, we should be able to see the place" he said, looking at his map again.

"If we do this thing on the day of a rebel protest, most of the DC police force will be concentrated on that, we wouldn't have any resistance" Johnny said, still trying to look at the small gathering at the corner of the street.

"Well, we're hoping that whether there is a protest or not, we'll do this without any resistance" Colin said, slowing down as the big abandoned stadium came into view. He could make out a small warehouse on the side of the road. The two garage doors were open, and appeared to be empty.

"See that?" Maddox asked.

"Yeah, we'll park here" Colin said, turning the Warthog to the warehouse. Slowly, the vehicle moved inside the dark garage, and stopped. Colin cut the engine, and jumped out, flashlight in hand. The warehouse had been used for storage for the stadium back when it was being used. Deflated footballs and soccer balls were scattered all over the place, along with crushed boxes and papers.

"This'll be perfect, we'll hide out here till it's time to go" whispered Johnny as he stood beside Colin.

"There a light around here?" Colin asked. Maddox flipped a switch and a small lamp hanging from the ceiling flicked on. Johnny and Colin quickly closed the garage door behind them, along with the other one, so that no one would see them.

"Looks good. Okay, Death, I'll need your help to gather some intelligence on this place" Maddox said. Colin nodded.

"Spirit and I will stay here, you two go" he said. The two men nodded and walked out through a door near the back of the warehouse, leaving Fisher and Colin all alone. The ex-Master Sergeant began pacing around the room for a moment, tapping the walls and kicking a dead soccer ball around. He finally looked up at Fisher, who was leaning against the Warthog, staring at the floor.

"Spirit" he said. The man didn't answer at first, then suddenly shook his head and looked up.

"Yeah?"

"You all right dude?" asked Colin, tossing the soccer ball aside. Fisher rubbed his eyes.

"Yeah, fine" he said.

"You sure? You've been acting weird lately dude. First you disappear during the morning, now you've become so quiet" he said. Fisher shrugged.

"Guess I'm still in shock still" he said.

"Shock about what?"

"Us, leaving the UNSC and now planning to strike back...I guess it's getting to me" he said.

"You still wanna do it?" Colin asked.

"Of course, I won't back out now, but still...going up against the UNSC and all, just scares me I guess" he said. Colin patted him on the back.

"Hey, relax, we'll just do this, then you can do whatever you want with the money we get out of it, I know I'll be leaving, try and start my life again" he said, grinning. Fisher didn't make eye contact, but nodded.

"Yeah, I'll probably do the same" he said. Colin still wasn't satisfied, but it seemed that the medic wasn't into talking. He backed off and began playing with the ball again. A car drove by outside, which startled Colin. He looked outside, to see a black van driving full speed to the bank.

"Odd" he whispered, looking over at Fisher, who was now staring at the garage door. Colin shook his head, and walked back inside.

"Looks like they're getting another shipment of shit" he said. Fisher nodded. Colin stared blankly at him for a second, before sitting down on a large crate and taking out a cigarette. Just as he was about to light it, Maddox and Johnny returned.

"We've figured out a way to get in" Johnny announced. Colin stood up, breathing in the fumes from the nicotine stick.

"Talk to me" he said.

"That black van that drove by, dropped off a new shift of guards, and then took the old shift probably back to a police station or something. This is what we are thinking. The day we do our little heist, we set up a bunch of road spikes out front, to disable the van as it's coming to drop off more guards. Once the van stops, we move in and kill everyone on board, then take the van to the bank. There's some sort of back garage entrance, which is where the guards are dropped off. We go there, wait for the old shift of guards to come out, and then kill them. The people inside will have no chance to defend themselves" Johnny said, grinning broadly. Colin nodded and grinned as well.

"Excellent. We'll need silenced weapons for that though" he said.

"Not a problem, give me a day or two, I'll have six for all of us" he said, grinning again. Colin knocked off some of the ashes from his cigarette and looked at Fisher again, who was ignoring them.

"Okay, good. Tell this to Shadow, let's get out of here" he said.

"Yo! Who the fuck is in there!" Colin froze as the deep voice entered his ears. He looked over at Johnny and Maddox, who stared back at him.

"I know someone's in there, get the fuck out!" another voice yelled. Maddox moved to the door and looked inside.

"It's the guys from the street corner" he whispered. Colin grinned and took another puff of his cigarette.

"Come on in ya douche bag" he yelled. The garage doors opened, revealing five men, who walked inside. Two men held baseball bats, while another had a lead pipe.

"Yo jackass, this is our turf, get out" the lead one yelled. Colin smiled and breathed in more fumes from his cigarette.

"Hello, he's talking to you, you mother fucker" another man growled. Colin nodded and looked at his cigarette. He then flicked it at the lead man and glared at him.

"Why don't you make us" he growled. The man bawled his fists and rushed forward. At the same time, the other four men rushed at them. Colin ducked the man's first two blows, and then smashed his fist into his stomach. The man grunted, but smashed his fist down onto Colin's back. His spine exploded in pain, but Colin stood straight. He grabbed the man by the collar of his jacket and punched him repeatedly in the face. The man brought his arms up, but Colin held both of them down. He put both of the man's hands into his one fist, and used his free hand to grab the back of his head. He then pivoted and smashed his head into the warthog. The man howled in pain, and eventually broke free. Colin punched him two more times in the face, and then tossed him into one of his goons. The two of them collapsed into the corner. Johnny grabbed one of the baseball bats and yanked it from another man's grip, breaking his wrists. He brought it over his head and cracked it over his skull. The man was knocked out. Fisher had a bleeding nose as he tried to avoid the lead pipe being swung at him. Colin rushed at the attacker and tackled him from behind. The two of them were buried in cardboard boxes that fell on top of them as they fell into the corner. Colin was up first. He grabbed the man's jacket and pulled him up. He was dazed, but glared at Colin, who grinned and punched him in the face. The lead pipe fell. Colin scooped it up quickly and stabbed it at the man's stomach. He bent over, puking up onto the floor. Colin shook his head, then skipped forward and swung the end of the pipe into the man's face. He flew backwards into the boxes. Colin dropped the pipe and looked over at Maddox, who was torturing the last man. He had him in a headlock, and if he wanted too, could bring his arm or neck. Colin patted Maddox on the back and he let go. The man crumbled to the ground. Maddox kicked him twice, before grinning at the others.

"Nothing like a little torturing before you get the shit beaten out of you" he said.

"That makes no sense at all, but whatever, let's get out of here" Colin said, wiping the blood from his hands and face, then jumping into the Warthog. Johnny helped Fisher into the back, who was still holding back his head. Maddox climbed into the side seat. The engine roared as Colin turned the keys. Slowly, he backed out, and then drove back down Avery Street, to their apartment.

Vice Admiral Casar sat at his desk, reviewing a report of a group of men and women protesting against the Office of Naval Intelligence. Apparently, they had gotten wind of some of the human experiments they were conducting here for research. That was what he told the crowd, even though the people he was using were test subjects and would be useful in the war. He signed and shut his computer down, pinching the bridge of his nose. The door opened suddenly, and a big man, dressed in a suit and covered in medallions and ribbons walked in. Casar looked up.

"General Banton, please, sit down" he said, standing to shake his hand. Banton nodded and took a seat, shaking Casar's hand quickly. Casar sat down also. "What news do you bring me?" he asked.

"Good news sir. My plan has worked. One of the Shadow Ops II squad members wishes to help us. He's probably the youngest of the group and was the guy I told you about how didn't seem so happy about leaving the UNSC. He's petrified of the other squad members and doesn't want to leave, because he thinks they'll hunt him down and kill him. He'll help, for a cost naturally" Banton said. This was indeed good news. Casar smiled.

"What does he want?" he asked.

"Money, a home, a job, some stocks as well" he said.

"Good, we can do that. What's their plan?" Casar asked. General Banton leaned forward and began telling Vice Admiral Casar exactly what the Shadow Ops II squad was planning on doing to the Office of Naval Intelligence and the United Nations Space Command...

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Four
Date: 8 November 2003, 6:14 AM

Chapter Four

General Banton leaned forward in his chair, facing the Vice Admiral. Casar grinned, and leaned forward as well, the light from his desk lamp illuminating the fires in his eyes. Banton nodded.

"I met with one of their members yesterday. I told him our plan, told him what we needed from him. He asked for a reward, and I granted him whatever he wished. He asked for a home, money, stocks, and a job of some sort, which he would choose. That sounded reasonable to me, so I accepted. The Shadow Ops II squad is planning on attacking one of our three private banks here in Washington. He isn't sure of which one, but I'll meeting with him tomorrow morning, so I will find out, however I'm pretty sure they'll be robbing the one on Avery Street, by the old stadium" Banton began. Casar's eyes widened.

"Christ, our stocks, half of our credits are also storied there, not to mention valuable minerals and such" he said.

"Exactly, this makes it the prime target here. The squad member told me that they would be intercepting one of the guard shift vans, kill the new shift of guards, and then use the vehicle to get into the garage at the back. When the old shift of guards comes out, they'll be shot. Shadow Ops then move into the building, and take everyone else inside hostage. The garage door will then be locked and a single squad member will stand outside the main entrance, preventing anyone from getting in. They'll grab what they want, kill the hostages, then leave. Should only take them around twenty minutes at the latest" Banton finished. Casar leaned back, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Jesus...perfect plan, they won't know what'll hit them...how do we stop them?" he asked Banton. The General winced somewhat.

"Well sir, regular UNSC marines probably don't have the skill to take these guys down. They'll be wearing somewhat medium-sized body armor on, but they work a lot like the Spartans and can bring down anyone who enters the building. Because of that, I've asked for someone to help us out" he said.

"Before you continue, who's the guy you've gotten a hold off? Who's the squad member who's rating all his friends out?" Casar asked.

"His name is-BEEP!" The Vice Admiral and General looked up at the door, to see it open, revealing a large figure standing in the doorway. It stepped inside, the door closing behind it. When the light from the office hit the figure, it revealed a Covenant Elite, dressed in a magnificent black armor suit, with a simple headdress over its head. The Elite bowed its earrings and dressings hanging near the ground.

"Special Field Master Quala 'Qualamee, reporting as ordered General" it growled deeply. General Banton stood and shook the Elite's hand. He then turned to Casar.

"Vice Admiral, may I present Quala'Qualamee, head of the division of Black Ops Covenant troops here in Washington" he said. Casar walked around his desk, smiling. He also shook the Elite's giant hand.

"Pleasure to meet you, please sit, we have much to discuss" Casar said. The Elite took a seat beside the General and looked at Banton, who nodded.

"I brought Special Field Master 'Qualamee because I felt he could be of some use. He commands fifty Covenant soldiers, who all belong to the Black Ops division, a group of soldiers in the Covenant army, superior skills and power to that of the regular army. 'Qualamee wishes to assist in this endeavor" Banton explained. Casar nodded and crossed his arms on his desk.

"Special Field Master, do you know who we are up against?" he asked. The Elite nodded. "Do you know of the skills and power that the Shadow Ops II squad possesses?" he asked again. The Elite paused for a moment, before nodding.

"The Spartans" it whispered. Casar sort of shook and nodded his head.

"In a way, yes, they are much like the Spartans. Taking them out won't be easy, which is why I believe combining the Field Master's Black Ops soldiers with UNSC marines should be enough to bring these guys down" Casar said, looking at both the Elite and Banton. The General nodded and looked at Black Ops Elite, who also nodded. Casar leaned back in his chair.

"Getting our troops there is going to be a problem. We can't send them in transport vehicles along the road, there sentry standing outside will notice them a kilometer or two away" he said, shaking his head. Banton looked up, staring at the Admiral.

"Pelicans?" he asked. Casar raised an eyebrow, and then smiled.

"Perfect. We'll have our troops in Pelican dropships, that'll be hovering above the bank, once the squad is inside. How high would they have to be so they wouldn't be heard?" he asked Casar. The General winced again.

"Sir, we would have to have them fairly low in altitude, so they can drop off the troops quickly. Because of that, their sentry will hear them the whole time" he said. 'Qualamee sat forward.

"Covenant troopships are much quieter then your dropships and can deliver the troops quickly" it said, nodding.

"How many are here in Washington?" Casar asked.

"Fifteen was what I last counted" 'Qualamee said.

"How many soldiers can each hold?" Banton then asked, looking at the Elite.

"Ten on both sides, twenty soldiers" the Black Ops Elite said.

"Two dropships for your Black Ops soldiers and maybe three more for our marines. That makes five in total, think that'll be enough?" Casar thought out loud, looking at the two soldiers before him. Banton nodded.

"We should have a group of maybe four or five Pelicans on standby, each loaded with marines, in case the Shadow Ops break out" he said. 'Qualamee showed no objections at all. Casar then stood up.

"Meet with our friend tomorrow, and get some attack times down. Find out when we should assault and such. Also tell him that I personally thank him for what he is doing and plan to make the rest of his life as good as I can" the Admiral said, standing. Banton and 'Qualamee also stood, and saluted the Admiral.

"We'll talk quickly tomorrow after your meeting with our man" Banton suggested. Casar nodded, and then watched the two of them leave his office. He sat back down, and held his head up by his hands. Whoever this soldier was, he was taking quite a risk, ratting his friends out and helping out ONI, after they ruined his military career. He stood and began to shut down everything in his office. Grabbing his coat, he began the long walk out of the ONI facility and to his home.

24 hours later, 10:00am.

Colin looked around him and could see nothing but a red fire that surrounded him. He turned in all directions and saw nothing but fire. The heat was intense and he tried to block it by holding his arms up to cover his face. Slowly, it closed in around him. He tried to scream, but nothing happened. Suddenly, the fires exploded and he began to fall into a black void, voices screaming at him. He saw the six members of his Shadow Ops squad, all glaring at him...Jamie Fisher's face was the last one seen, before everything went black.

Colin sat straight up, the blanket on him falling off. He looked to the door of his bedroom to see Fredrick poking his head into the room. The leader grinned.

"Morning Shade. Breakfast is made, I want us all ready to go by ten thirty" he said. Colin nodded, and then swung his legs over the bed. He pulled a pair of pants on he had been wearing yesterday, then walked into the kitchen.

On the couch were Johnny Colbourne had been sleeping last night, M6D pistols and three MA5B assault rifles lay on it, extra clips of ammunition beside them. Colin grinned at Johnny, who was already polishing a pistol. He saluted at Colin, who nodded and sat down at the table, helping himself to some pancakes. Andrew Kreutz Kamp was at the kitchen, making more as Todd Maddox walked out of his bedroom. He merely nodded at everyone and sat down. Colin swallowed a mouthful of the breakfast and looked around the room.

"Where's Spirit?" he asked, referring to Jamie. Owens appeared from his bedroom, combing his short, blond hair.

"Gone to get some more eggs for Wraith here" he said. Andrew shrugged and held up an empty egg cartoon. Colin merely nodded, but finished his breakfast quickly. He handed his plate to Andrew, and then went back to his bedroom. He had laid his clothes out for today last night and went to the dresser they lay folded on. First, he put on a pair of boxers and an undershirt. Next, he grabbed a heavy, thick, black body suit and zipped it around him. He then grabbed his Kevlar III torso armor, shoulder/elbow/knee pads and chin guards and attached them around his body. Lastly, he snapped a belt around his waist and placed knives into the holsters. He grabbed his M6D pistol and slammed a clip of 12.7mm semi-explosive, armor-piercing rounds into the gun handle. He cocked the weapon, and then holstered it, keeping it unbuttoned so he could take it out easily. He looked at himself in the mirror briefly, making sure everything looked right. He finally breathed heavily and walked outside.

Johnny and Fredrick were already dressed and ready. Todd Maddox had come out just as Colin did and Andrew was just going to get changed. The door to their apartment clicked and opened. Both Fredrick and Johnny pulled their guns out and pointed it at the door as it opened. Jamie Fisher walked inside, beat red and carrying a cartoon of eggs. Fredrick grinned and patted the medic on the shoulder.

"Gave us a little scare there Spirit, we didn't know where you were" he said. Fisher nodded and dropped the eggs onto the kitchen counter. He then tossed his coat onto a nearby chair, and walked into his room to get dressed. Colin watched him go, and then looked over at Owens. Their leader however didn't seem to care and went back to loading one of the assault rifles.

Andrew and Jamie got dressed quickly, and before Colin knew it, the six of them were standing around the kitchen table, fully dressed and armed. Blueprints for the bank lay on the table, Owens leaning over them. He looked at his men.

"The van comes down this road to drop off more guards at eleven o'clock. Thanks to Death and his valuable resources, we've obtained two rows of tire spikes, which we'll plant somewhat ahead of the warehouse we'll be stationed at, since the van won't stop immediately. Once the van has stopped, and the driver and possibly the passenger have gotten out investigating, we move. Silenced weapons here people, we don't want to alarm anyone. We'll then replace the tires with the ones we found in that warehouse and head to the bank. Death and Spirit will be in charge of driving the Warthog. The garage door opens and we go inside. Before anyone gets out of the van, we must wait for all four of the security guards to be outside. Myself and Shade will be in the front. The Warthog will be parked along the side, so the guards don't get suspicious. When we start shooting, everyone else should be moving in. Death and Spirit, you two will hide out of sight, and then move in when the shooting starts, you move in with the rest of us. Once the guards are dead, we then head into the bank itself. Take the secretaries hostage, but use the two managers to unlock the vaults and help us gather the stuff we wish to steal. Specter will also be hacking into the banks system and taking away stocks, and also taking money from secure accounts. Once we've gathered what we need, we kill everyone, and then leave. Remember, our rally point is here, since they don't know we've taken up residence in this place. Questions?" said Owens.

"Alarms?" asked Johnny. Maddox looked up from the map.

"Two, positioned near the front entrance. If they are triggered, a response team of police officers will be sent. Basically, if they go off, our mission is over and we get out of there" he said. Johnny nodded. Owens leaned back and crossed his arms.

"We'll be okay; this'll be like taking candy from a baby. Grab some extra ammo or weapons if you want, then head down to the garage" he said, throwing the map out. Colin turned around from the table and walked to the couch. He grabbed another M6D pistol and fastened its holster to his right hip, while his original pistol was on his left hip. Johnny already had one of the assault rifles slung over his shoulder. Andrew and Fredrick grabbed the last ones, while Jamie and Todd simply picked up extra ammo for their pistols. They walked out of the apartment in a single line, and took the stairs all the way down to the garage. They walked by a senior couple, who looked at them strangely. Fredrick smiled at them.

"UNSC marines, nothing to worry folks" he said, flashing his old Shadow Ops ID card. This seemed to relax them and the couple continued to climb the stairs. Descending the stairs took awhile, and Colin was already starting to break a sweat. Luckily, it was a cold day in Washington. The humidity was low and it was extremely windy. The group of six reached the garage and found their Warthog quickly. Because it only had room for three, they had purchased a small car to carry the remaining three people. Colin climbed into the passenger seat of their car and buckled himself in. Andrew got into the driver's eat, while Jamie Fisher got into the back. Owens was driving the Warthog, with Maddox sitting beside him and Johnny on the chain gun. The motors of the two vehicles started up. Andrew shifted the car into gear, and drove out of the parking space. The Warthog followed behind them, Johnny ducking low so his head didn't scrap the roof of the garage. The two vehicles ascended three levels of the garage, before finally exiting it and emerging onto the busy street of New Washington. They eventually poked their way into the lane and began to long drive to Avery Street. As they did, Colin looked out his window, watching the people go by and wave at the Warthog behind them. No doubt, they all thought they were regular marines, which was what they were hoping for. Johnny was waving back at everyone, while Maddox worked away at a small computer in his lap. Owens gave the odd wave, but kept his attention on the road.

Colin looked back at Fisher, who was looking out the window as well. The kid was shaking somewhat and also seemed to be sweating. Colin raised an eyebrow.

"You okay Spirit?" he asked him. Jamie turned slowly and nodded at Colin, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Are you sick comrade?" asked Andrew, looking into the mirror. Jamie simply shook his head and looked forward. Colin shrugged and shifted himself around. Andrew glanced at him briefly, but Colin simply shrugged again. Andrew nodded, and then turned his eyes back to the road.

They eventually reached the old, unused road of Avery Street. The stadium towered over them, and created a huge shadow on the ground. Andrew turned the vehicle and slowly pulled into the warehouse positioned along the road. The garage doors had been left open overnight. The German took the key out and got out, as Owens carefully pulled the Warthog inside. Colin slammed his door after getting out and ran over to Johnny Colbourne, who was looking for his spikes. He found them in two duffel bags in the back of their car. He handed out several rows of them to the squad members, and then rushed out to the road.

"We got like five minutes until the van comes, let's move!" yelled Owens. Colin set his row of spikes down first, Johnny placing his row beside his. Using the six rows of tire spikes, they made two columns that covered the width of the road. Johnny and Colin remained on the road, trying their best to cover the spikes with dust and dirt. Owens ran out of the warehouse, after securing their equipment.

"Time's up! Get inside!" he yelled. Colin pulled Johnny away from the spikes, and then ran into the warehouse. The large doors were pulled shut behind them. Andrew turned the overhead light on and they waited. There were two windows facing the road on either side of the warehouse. They were gathered around them, looking for the black van. After a minute or so, Jamie Fisher squinted his eyes.

"Vehicle spotted from the north" he said. Colin looked carefully and could make out a large black van heading towards them.

"All right, here we go. Check your weapons, check yourselves, there's no going back now" Fredrick said, running to the door. Each sliding door had two small windows on them, which they looked through, watching the van approach their trap. It was accelerating at top speed, and the driver didn't even see it coming. It's front and back tires ran over the spikes and blew open. The van was lifted off the ground for a few seconds, before slamming hard onto the road, unmovable. Both the passenger and the driver got out to look at the wheels. Suddenly, the back door of the van opened and three more guards came out.

"Okay, we got five guards, which means that there are most likely five guards in that bank. Wait for my command" Owens whispered. Colin knew that Fredrick was waiting for all five men to be within vision and right now, only three guards faced them. The remaining two guards were slowly making their way around the vehicle and finally joined the others.

"Now!" yelled Owens. The two doors were opened and the squad moved into the open. Colin brought up his one pistol and fired twice, hitting the guard on the far left in the ear and shoulder. Owens and Johnny fired their assault rifles in short bursts, taking out two of the guards. The remaining two went for their weapons, but a quick burst shot from Andrew silenced one of them. The last guard got his pistol out, but Todd Maddox raised his own pistol and fired once, hitting the guard in the face. He fell backwards, lying beside his dead comrades.

"Move!" yelled Owens. The bodies were policed quickly, and then stored inside the warehouse. It turned out that in the back off the van were four extra tires, which they quickly screwed on. It took them a total of seven minutes to take off the old tires and put on the new ones. Once that was done, Johnny and Jamie Fisher ran back to the Warthog and activated it, while the others got into their captured vehicle. Shade got into the passenger seat and reloaded his pistol, while Owens turned the engine of the van. It rumbled to life, and then began to move forward as Fredrick pushed his foot on the accelerator. The Warthog drove out of the warehouse and followed closely behind the van.

Officer Paul Brown sat in a chair in the lobby of the ONI private bank he worked in. His hat was tipped over, allowing him to sleep, since he hadn't slept all night. He looked over at his partner, Officer James Scott, who was already asleep. The roar of engines startled him and the two secretaries working at the desk. Paul stood and looked out the main entrance. The familiar sight of the black guard shift van slowly approached the building. He grinned and patted his friend on the shoulder. James awoke suddenly and looked up at Paul.

"Time to go mate" Brown said. James nodded and stood. The two of them headed behind the desk, where the gate that blocked off the vaults from the lobby was being opened by Officer Reece, one of the vault guards. His two partners, Officers Graham and Harris were already in the garage.

"'Bout time eh?" Reece said, opening the gate. Paul nodded and yawned. He and his fellow guards had pulled a ten hour shift for the last three days and now they were done. He couldn't wait to get home and sleep in his bed. The five guards gathered inside the garage. The door was already opened, and the van was parked. Paul could make out two men sitting in the front. Normally, Sergeant Evans and Officer Hayes would be greeting them, but two different people got out of the van. They also wore different uniforms then regular security guards.

"You guys aren't the duty shift guards, you're wearing the wrong uniform...where's Sergeant Evans, what's going on?" asked Officer Reece. They didn't answer and merely jumped out of the van. Suddenly, the driver pulled out his pistol and fired, hitting Officer Reece right in the head. Blood sprayed all over Paul, who yelped in surprise. The passenger also pulled out his pistol and fired twice. Hayes took both rounds to his torso, which was ripped open and sprayed blood into the room. The back of the van opened, revealing more men dressed in black and holding guns. Paul dove to the left quickly, avoiding bullets fired at him. He landed inside the vault room, his pistol out. Officer Harris had crouched low and was going for his own weapon, when a volley of pistol rounds smashed into his body. He slammed back into the wall and lay there, dead. Paul could see James Scott taking his weapon out. Screams could be heard behind him, followed by yelling. Paul looked and saw two more men, grabbing the two secretaries and pulling them to the floor. Bullet fire startled Paul and he looked to see James fire his pistol. However, he missed horribly and paid for it. One of the men had an assault rifle, which he fired, hitting James in the head. The officer flipped over backwards, and landed on the pavement, his head in pieces around him. Paul ran for the lobby and fired his pistol wildly. However, both of the men in the lobby were gone. Paul Brown ignored the screams of the two managers and secretaries and made a dive for the alarm. He dove over the reception desk and landed hard on the floor. He stood and was about to pull the alarm, when from behind them, the two men fired their clips of ammo into Paul's back. He fell against the wall, his face brushing the siren, then slide to the floor, dead.

"Clear lobby!"

"Clear garage!"

"All clear, move to your positions, let's get this done!"

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Five
Date: 9 November 2003, 6:34 AM

Chapter Five

Colin ejected the empty clip of ammo from his pistol and slammed a new one in. He and Todd Maddox rushed into the lobby area, where Johnny Colbourne and Jamie Fisher were trying to control the two managers and the two secretaries. The one manager, a big man, with a bulging stomach was yelling in Fisher's face. Colin walked up behind him and smashed the butt end of his pistol into his head. He fell, completely knocked out. He then pointed it at the other manager, who was going for the blood-covered alarm.

"Get on the fucking floor!" he yelled. The manager hesitated. Todd Maddox came up behind him and kicked him in the back of his left leg. The man grunted and fell to one knee. Maddox stood over him and kicked him in the side, knocking him over completely. Johnny forced the two secretaries behind the reception desk to get down on their knees, hands behind their heads. Owens suddenly walked in, Andrew Kreutz Kamp right behind him.

"Garage is locked; get those secretaries into the office. Make sure the phone and computer are destroyed, along with any other type of equipment" he ordered. Johnny nodded and hauled both of them to their feet. Owens walked over to the one manager who was rolling on the floor in pain, Todd Maddox standing over him. Fredrick bent on one knee and grabbed the man by his collar.

"Now listen to me very carefully. Specter here will stop bullying you if you do as I say and unlock all the vaults in the back" he whispered, glaring at the man. The manager's name tag said "Henderson, Alan" on it. His glasses were crooked on his face and he was sweating. He nodded and stood up. Looking at Owens and Maddox, he began to walk to the vaults, Todd right behind him. Johnny emerged from the office and followed them. Owens looked over at Colin, who was dragging the knocked out manager behind the desk.

"Keep an eye on those secretaries" he said. Colin nodded, and let go of the manager's arms. Andrew walked past him, putting a pair of sun glasses on and opened the main door. He then leaned against the brick wall and took out a cigarette. Colin walked to the door and locked it, grinning at Andrew, who laughed and gave him the finger. Jamie Fisher emerged from the other office and stood by the desk.

"Stand over there and keep an eye on the hostages" Colin said, pointing to the other office. Jamie nodded and sat down on one of the chairs along the wall near the alarm. He glanced inside the office briefly, and then stared at the floor. Colin stood still for a moment, before walking through the vault room gate and looking down the hall. Todd Maddox was sitting at a small desk, typing away at a computer. Alan Henderson, one of the managers, was on his knees, facing the wall, while Owens and Johnny grabbed large bagfuls of tiny credits and tossed them into a large duffel back. Because the credits of money were so small, the duffel bag could carry every single bag in the vault room. They had two more bags just in case. Colin nodded at Maddox, who nodded back and continued to type. The sniper walked back inside the lobby and took out a cigarette. He lighted it, staring at Andrew, who was staring into the sky. Colin inhaled the fumes from the cigarette and breathed them out. He looked over at Jamie, who was staring inside the office.

"Want one?" he asked him. Jamie shook his head and stared at the floor again. Colin watched him for a second, before breathing in more fumes. He finally sat down behind the desk and took out his two pistols. He did a quick check to make sure each one of them was fully loaded, then leaned back and tried to relax. Wasn't easy when you had to worry about three hostages and one freaked out manager.

Lance Corporal Peter O'Neill stared through the scope of his S2 AM sniper rifle, the typical weapon used by Marine snipers. He was looking through the window of a door that was fixed inside a large warehouse near the stadium, which overlooked the small private bank in the distance. The Corporal sighted his vision on the lone man standing outside the main entrance, pacing around and smoking a cigarette.

"One bogey out front" he reported. General Banton, who was sitting beside the sniper, took out his binoculars and sighted them on the man. He took his head away from the scopes and looked at five pictures laid out in front of him.

"Looks like Corporal Andrew Kreutz Kamp, demolitions expert" he mused.

"I have a clear shot" O'Neill reported.

"No, our man said not to attack till 12:00. It is now 11:40, so you got forty minutes to wait. Just watch him and report if anyone else joins him" Banton snapped.

"Yes boss" Peter replied, not taking his head away from his rifle's scope. Banton picked up his radio.

"Lead to Eagle One" he said. A deep voice blared through his radio's speaker.

"Go ahead" said Special Field Master 'Qualamee.

"Twenty units to go Field Master have your ships be ready" Banton said.

"Acknowledged Lead, Eagle One out" the Elite said. Banton put the radio down and continued watching the pacing man. Inside the stadium, a group of five dropships, loaded with Covenant Black Ops and UNSC marines sat waiting for their cue to take off and attack. All they waited for was the time to hit noon.

"Got another figure coming out" O'Neill suddenly said.

Colin unlocked the door to the bank and looked at Andrew, who stopped pacing and tossed his cigarette aside. He nodded at Colin.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Two things Wraith. One, stop pacing, you're a distraction. Two, want a drink?" he said. Andrew laughed first and punched Colin lightly in the arm. He then licked his dry lips and nodded.

"Some vater couldn't hurt sir" he said. Colin nodded and walked back into the lobby. A drink and snack machine had been set up near the vault gate. Colin smashed open the drink machine and pulled out a bottle of water. He then opened the door again and handed it to Andrew.

"He's giving the sentry some water" O'Neill said. General Banton looked at the pictures laid out before him again.

"Master Sergeant Colin Thompson, executive officer, team sniper" he said out loud, looking at the portrait of the man.

"He's gone back inside. Looks like he's locked the door as well" Peter said.

"And the sentry?"

"Stopped pacing. He's drinking the water given to him" the sniper simply stated. Banton glanced at his watch. The numbers 11:50 blinked back at him. He raised his radio and clicked it on.

"Ten minutes people" he said, and then put it aside.

"Who the fuck are you people?" Colin punched the fat manager across the face. The man moaned in pain and spat up blood. Colin knelt in front of him and grinned.

"You are in no position to demand anything of me" he said and punched him in the stomach. He had woken up quite quickly after Colin had smashed his pistol into the back of his head. Regardless, he seemed delirious.

"Alan!" he yelled suddenly. Colin grabbed a nearby cloth from the bank's bathroom and stuffed it into his mouth. He tried to scream, but the cloth sank further down his throat and he began to choke. Colin looked out into the lobby, to see Fredrick and Johnny opening up another nearby vault.

"Do we need him?" Colin asked, referring to the choking manager. Owens looked over at him, then down at the Henderson, who was crying.

"Nah" he finally said. Colin nodded and took out his pistol. He walked back into the office, where the man was trying to spit the cloth up. He looked up to see the barrel of the gun in his face. Without even thinking, Colin pulled the trigger. It entered straight through his forehead and exploded out the other end, spraying the wall with blood and pieces of skull and brains. The man slumped forward, the cloth dropping out of his mouth, coated in red. Colin snapped the office door shut and locked it. He then blew the door handle off with his pistol, sealing the body inside. Colin sat back down behind the desk, to see Jamie Fisher glaring at him. Colin looked at him.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked. Fisher suddenly shook his head and grinned.

"Yeah man, fine" he said, then looked quickly at the two secretaries. Colin raised an eyebrow, but ignored it and watched Johnny and Fredrick work their way through the vaults, dumping credits and diamonds into their second duffel bag. Todd Maddox suddenly appeared.

"I've destroyed two hundred ONI bank accounts, spread out over the world. The stocks were really hard, but I managed to hack and destroy a third or so of what ONI owns. They should be put out of business within a few months or so" he said, grinning from ear to ear. Owens looked at him and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Excellent, help us with these last few vaults" he ordered. Henderson remained on the floor, trembling and whining. Colin's watch suddenly beeped. He looked at it.

"Twelve o'clock" he announced, getting up to grab a snack.

"Show time General Banton said into his radio. He looked over at Peter O'Neill who grinned and sighted his trigger onto Andrew's head.

Kreutz Kamp drained the last of his water into his mouth, and then tossed the bottle away. He looked over at the warehouse and suddenly saw a flicker of light come from the window of the side door. He stood suddenly, just as a loud crack emanated from the warehouse. A 14.5mm slug slammed straight into his body armor. Following that, a second shot was fired, and hit him just below the first bullet. It burst threw his Kevlar torso plate and struck his liver. Another shot fired, this time hitting Andrew in the neck, destroying his esophagus. He began choking, blood flowing from his mouth and soaking through his uniform and body armor. He slowly began to slide to the ground, a trail of blood behind him. Another shot rang out, but pinged off the wall.

"Son of a bitch" Peter growled, reloading his rifle quickly. Banton continued to watch the slowly dying German.

"Tough target" he said.

With what strength was left, Andrew stood up, using the wall for support and fell against the door, banging on it twice.

"Oh my god!" Jamie yelled. Colin looked up from his bag of chips to see the shocked face of Andrew looking at him, blood covering his face and the door. Suddenly, a bullet fired from somewhere slammed into the back of his head, and smashed against the window. Andrew's head exploded, showering the door frame and window with brain tissue and pieces of skull and flesh. The headless corpse tipped over and fell onto the sand.

"Target down" Peter yelled, reloading again.

"Eagle One, deploy!" General Banton ordered.

"Eagle One deploying"

Colin rushed to the door, attempting to unlock it and get Andrew inside, when five Covenant dropships soared out of the stadium to his left and hovered above the bank. The side pods opened, revealing ropes that flew down to the ground. Colin watched in horror as Covenant troops, dressed in black armor and UNSC marines slide down the ropes and landed onto the ground. A group of them gathered around the main door, shoving Andrew's corpse aside and leveled their weapons.

"Shit!" Colin yelled, turning on his heel and running forward. They fired, their various projectiles smashing into the glass, which began to crack. Suddenly, it shattered open, allowing the bullets and plasma rounds to enter the room. Colin quickly jumped forward, grabbing hold of the reception desk counter and pulled himself over it. He landed behind it and grabbed his pistols from his holsters. Jamie Fisher was already behind the desk, trembling near one of the chairs. He looked at Colin, who raised the pistols over the desk and fired randomly. Johnny Colbourne appeared near the vault room gate, but quickly dove behind a wall as bullets were fired at him.

"What the fuck?!" he yelled, appearing again and fired his assault rifle quickly. Fredrick stood beside him and looked over at Colin.

"Report?" he screamed.

"Wraith's dead, fucking Covenant dropships hovering above us, dropping troops onto us. Black Ops and marines" he yelled, firing his pistols again.

"Get back here! We're leaving" Owens yelled, firing his pistol twice.

"Garage door is being opened!" came the voice of Maddox in the distance. Owens swore and disappeared. Johnny however remained where he was and made gestures for Colin and Jamie to run. Colin looked over at Fisher, who was still hiding under the desk, holding the assault rifle. He grabbed the rifle from his hands and fired it over the desk quickly.

"Jamie! Go! Go now!" he yelled at the medic, who nodded and crawled over towards Johnny. Colin emptied his clip of 7.62 armor-piercing rounds and reloaded.

"Shade!" suddenly yelled Johnny. Colin looked over to him, to see the heavy weapons expert gesturing for him to come. Colin threw the assault rifle towards him. Jamie appeared and caught it. He then stood up and helped Johnny fire covering rounds. Colin was about to move, when a hand reached over the desk and grabbed him. Immediately, Colin dropped his pistols, grabbed the hand and pulled with all his might. A UNSC marine was flipped over the desk and landed upside down in front of Colin. He looked up at Colin, who grinned. He grabbed the marine and pulled him to his knees, punching him continuously in the head. The marine suddenly slammed his fist into Colin's armor, breaking his knuckles. Howling in pain, he broke free of Colin's grasp and went for his pistol. Colin leaned back and brought his boot up, kicking the marine in the face and breaking his jaw. He then grabbed his pistol and emptied his clip into the marine, who went limp. Colin shook his head, and then holstered his pistols again. He crawled past the dead marine and reached the vault gate. Jamie leaned forward and grabbed Colin's shoulder. He then pulled him through the gate, which Johnny quickly shut and locked. The marines and Covenant rushed into the lobby, but the three men were already moving to the garage. Johnny paused to look at Alan Henderson. The lone manager was running to open the gate. Colbourne took his pistol out and fired twice, hitting Alan in the face and throat. He toppled to the floor, a pool of blood forming from his screwed up face. Grinning, Johnny turned and rushed into the garage with the others. Owens and Maddox were reinforcing the lock on the garage, which was slowly being pulled up. Fredrick looked up at them, and then nodded at the vehicles.

"Shade and Spirit, get into the van! Specter, Death, you're with me, get into the Warthog" he yelled, jumping into the driver's seat of the military vehicle. Colin patted Jamie on the back and opened the door to the guard shift van. Fisher ran to the other side and climbed into the passenger's seat. They buckled up their seat belts and waited for Owens and the others to get into their Warthog. The 'Hog was in front of them, and would have to leave the garage first. Colin started the engine, and then waited. Colbourne was on the M41 LAAG chain gun. He swiveled it around to face the door and suddenly began firing. The bullets drove right through the cheap metal, smashing into the marines and Covenant troops on the other side. Owens revved the Warthog's engines and accelerated forward. The front part of the Warthog smashed right through the weakened door, flattening three Marines trying to get out of the way. Colin slammed his foot onto the gas pedal and the van quickly followed. Johnny was still firing his chain gun, picking off groups of marines and Covenant soldiers rushing towards them. Colin cut to the right quickly, almost running over some marines, and then rushed along the main road. Owens drove the Warthog to the far left of the road. He was heading straight for the warehouse.

"Oh shit!" General Banton yelled. He stood up quickly and dove to the right. Peter O'Neill looked through his sniper scope and watched the Warthogs front bumper slam through the side of the warehouse. The sniper didn't have time to scream as he was upended by the bumper and crushed beneath its wheels. The building was made out of a cheap metal, used for small storage sheds. The Warthog drove through it as if it was nothing but some bushes. The roof fell over top of them, but Owens kept his foot on the accelerator. General Banton's legs were crushed beneath a pile of metal which landed on him as he had tried to crawl out of the warehouse.

"Jesus Christ" Colin said, laughing as the Warthog emerged from the other side of the destroyed warehouse, its occupants still alive. Suddenly, large plasma rounds slammed into the ground around them as they drove along the main road at top speeds. Two of the Covenant dropships were following them, using their stationary plasma canons to try and pick them off. Johnny bent low to aim the chain gun into the air and fired at the nearest one. The bullets clanked against the armor, barely even denting it. Johnny continued to bend low, and fired again, this time hitting the ship's plasma canon. After a few thousand rounds, it finally blew off and the dropship stopped chasing them. The second dropship however was focused on the black van, which Colin was driving. He looked into the side mirror and saw the large ship fire, the plasma rounds hitting the ground to his left. Owens drove the Warthog closer, allowing Johnny to fire and take out the ship's canon. However, during his assault, a power cable that powered the dropship's left hovering pads was hit and destroyed. Without warning, the ship sank rapidly to the ground and smashed into it, flipping over and sliding along the ground after them. Pieces of metal and armor flew past them, as the wreckage literally chased them. Colin looked ahead and could see sub-divisions of New Washington approach. He turned left off Avery Street, Owens right behind him. The destroyed Covenant dropship slammed into the buildings and exploded, knocking them over and destroying the intersection completely. Colin laughed out loud.

"Wahoo! Nice one Shadow" he said into his radio.

"We're not done yet. Split up and head back to the rally point. Wait until everyone's there, then we get out of the city" Owens said.

"Roger" Colin said. They approached another intersection, where Colin turned right and the Warthog turned left. He watched the large vehicle disappear, wishing he had its protection. He sighed however, knowing it wouldn't come back and focused on getting to their apartment.

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Six
Date: 13 November 2003, 4:06 AM

Chapter Six

"Split up and meet back at the apartment"

"Roger, see you there." Colin Thompson clicked his radio off and watched as the bullet-scarred Warthog Fredrick Owens was driving took a left at the nearest turn and disappeared down the street. Colin on the other hand kept on going straight and nearly ran into the afternoon traffic. Swearing, he quickly backed up, forcing two cars to move off the road, then made a right and drove down a side street. Colin followed it to the end, and then made another left. He looked around at the buildings and signs, but didn't recognize a single one.

"Where the fuck are we" he whispered, turning onto a new street. Jamie Fisher shook his head.

"Fucking clueless here" he said, looking out the window. Bullets fired from behind them suddenly pinged off a traffic sign that had passed Fisher's head. He quickly sat back inside; his hair all messed up from the wind.

"Jesus Christ!" he yelled. Colin looked out his side mirror and could see a Transport Warthog, filled with six marines on the back accelerating after them. Two of the marines were holding MA5B assault rifles and had them pointed at the van. He saw one of them at down at the tires.

"Shit" Colin whispered and swerved quickly to the left. The marine fired, but luckily missed. A car came driving at the van from the opposite direction, forcing Colin to brake and move to the other side of the street. The Transport 'Hog accelerated rapidly, and pulled up along Fisher's side. The medic pulled out his M6D pistol and fired at the jeep, the bullets pinging off the armor around the driver. He backed off, but three of the marines jumped off the 'Hog and were able to hang onto the side of the van. Fisher looked over at Colin.

"We got company" he said. Colin nodded and moved to the far side of the road, bumping over the curb and pressing closer to the wall that surrounded a landfill site in Washington. Two of the marines jumped off, but the last one stayed on for a second. However, when his armor began to scrap along the concrete wall and tear it apart, he jumped, his body smashing into the wall and hitting the sidewalk. Colin quickly drove back onto the road, but the Transport 'Hog was right beside him. He took out his pistol and fired, hitting the passenger in the head. The remaining three marines in the back stood up and leveled their assault rifles. Colin quickly swerved the van to the left, smashing into the 'Hog. One of the marines in the back fell over the side, while the remaining two hung on. Colin did it again, forcing the Warthog into the opposite lane. Cars and trucks honked at them as they drove past. Colin pressed harder on the well, continuing to force the Warthog over. The marines on the back jumped off, onto the roof off the van. Realizing this, Colin took out his pistol again and fired twice at the Warthog, killing the driver, and then shooting out the front right tire. It zigzagged along the road out of control, before flipping over and smashing into a building. The marines on the back both leaned over off the roof and fired their own pistols at the front tires of the van, then at the engine. Without warning, the front tires stopped moving and the back end of the van flipped high into the hair, sending the marines on the roof flying. The van landed upside down on the road and slide along it, crushing the two unconscious marines beneath it. It finally came to a stop at the end of the street, steam hissing from the engine.

Coughing, and waving smoke away from his face, Colin unbuckled himself from his seat and landed on what would be the roof of the cockpit. Jamie Fisher hung from his seat, his legs and arms dangling in the air. Colin felt a pulse and was glad to find one. He unbuckled the man and caught him as he fell. Jamie's eyes opened.

"Fucking Christ man" he said. Colin chuckled and set him down, then opened the door and crawled outside. The van was a total wreck, covered in bullet holes and leaking gas and oil. Flipping it wouldn't be heard, but trying to get it started again was impossible. The engine was also old and was already starting to fall apart. Colin was about to inspect it more closely, when a wail of sirens interrupted him. He looked down the street and could see three police patrol cars zooming in towards them. They passed by the bodies of the marines and the Warthog, and came to a halt near the flipped over van. Five police constables climbed out, pistols at the ready.

"Freeze!" yelled one of them. Colin took out his own pistol and fired three times, before rolling backwards, and hiding behind the van. His bullets slammed into one of the constables, who had been hiding behind the door to his car. He fell backwards, blood flowing from the bullet holes in his face. The other four constables fired wildly, but Colin was well hidden. He fired the odd round, but hit nothing.

Shaking his head, Jamie Fisher slowly began to crawl out from the cockpit. For some reason, the crash had temporarily made him deaf. He wiggled his ears around, but couldn't hear a lot. He couldn't hear Colin, who was yelling at him to get down. Jamie crawled out completely and stood. The sight of four police constables pointing their guns at him shocked him.

"Oh shit" he said. His ears suddenly popped and hearing returned. One of the constables fired his pistol. The bullet flew straight and true, rupturing right underneath Jamie's armor and piercing his stomach and intestinal area. The pain seared through him like a red hot razor. He grunted with pain and slowly fell to his knees, holding his stomach.

"Jamie! No!" Colin yelled. Slowly, the medic began to fall backwards. Colin rushed out from behind the van and grabbed him. He fired off several shots quickly with his pistol, while dragging the man back behind the van. He appeared again and fired, hitting another constable in the neck. The remaining three tried to split up and flank him. One officer provided cover fire from the cars, while the other two moved along the right. Colin saw them coming and fired twice, hitting both of them in the head and neck. They fell over without a scream at all. Colin looked over at the last officer. He looked at his dead colleagues, and then jumped into the nearest police car.

"Oh no you don't" Colin growled. He grabbed Jamie's pistol and rushed forward. He stood in front of the officer's car and fired into the cockpit. The bulletproof glass exploded, and the bullets slammed into the last constable. His body danced as Colin fired continuously. Finally, both pistols ran out of ammunition. Thompson tossed them aside, and then ran back to Jamie, whose stomach was bleeding badly.

"Oh my god Shade" Jamie whispered. Colin covered his mouth.

"Don't talk" he said. He had no medical supplies on him. Colin quickly lifted him up and carried him to one of the police cars. He laid the injured medic in the back and did his best to tape up the wound with the small medical kit that was in the car. Thompson then grabbed the keys from a dead constable, and then jumped into the driver's seat. He turned them and the engine started. Colin accelerated forward, looking back at Jamie, who was starting to freak out.

"My hands! Oh my god, my blood has covered my hands!" he said. Colin would think that the sight of blood and a gun wound would be normal for Jamie. Obviously not if it was him that had the wound.

"Shade! Fuck man, Shade! I'm fucking dying" he screamed.

"You're not gonna die man okay? You're not gonna die" Colin repeated, keeping an eye on the road and Jamie.

"It hurts, oh my god, it fucking hurts" Fisher continued to scream. Tears began to well up in his eyes and fall down his face.

"Hey! Come on now Spirit. Give me your hand," Colin said, reached over and grabbed one of Jamie's bloody hands, "You aren't going to die. We're gonna get you back to the apartment, and fix you up, you hear me? You're not gonna die"

"I'm so scared, I don't want to die" Jamie cried. He was starting to become delirious. Thompson found the main road that they had taken in the morning and followed it back to the apartment.

"We're almost there, just hang on" he said.

"Oh my god! Oh my god, my liver, my fucking liver!" Jamie began screaming. He was coughing up a lot of blood and seemed to be choking on it.

"Spit it up man!" Colin yelled, driving inside the garage of their apartment building. Jamie coughed up more blood.

"Fuck, my liver!" he cried again. Colin successfully parked the police car and shut the engine down. He climbed out and opened the back. He grabbed Jamie by his shoulders and lifted him into his arms. Slamming the door shut behind him, Colin walked briskly to the elevators, Jamie in his hands. He grimaced as blood from Fisher's wound began to seep into his uniform. When he got there, a man and a woman were about to walk into the elevator, but Colin pushed them aside.

"What the fuck?" the man yelled, but Colin ignored him. Using his knee, he closed the doors and told the elevator to go to the top floor.

"Fuck, so much fucking blood" Jamie cried, looking at the hole in his stomach. Colin agreed with Jamie in his head, he was loosing a lot of blood. And worst of all, it was getting all over him. The elevator pinged as they arrived at their floor. Colin rushed into the hall, and found their locked apartment door. He put Jamie down, supporting him with his shoulder, as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the key. The door opened, revealing their empty apartment. Colin took Jamie inside and cleared a spot on the floor, in front of the TV. He laid Jamie on the floor, who was turning deathly white.

"Shade" he whispered.

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna die"

"Shut up okay? Just shut up Spirit you aren't going to die. Do you know where you got shot? The stomach. Stomach shots like these take a few weeks or so to die from, not like a shot to the chest or head. We'll have fixed you up by then, and you'll be up and kicking before you know it. You aren't going to die" Colin repeated. Jamie rolled over and slowly began to fall asleep. Colin checked his pulse. It was weak, but still there, which he was thankful for. Jamie was young and didn't deserve to die, not right now. Colin would make sure he didn't die.

The apartment door suddenly swung open. Colin whirled around, his pistol up. Johnny Colbourne stood in the door frame, his hair and face covered in sweat. He walked inside, his hands shaking and his face twitching. Colin looked at him.

"Jesus, you all right?" he asked. Johnny shook his head and sat down.

"It's all wrong man, it's all fucking wrong" he said, stamping his foot onto the floor.

"Hey! Take it fucking easy" Colin yelled, looking down at Jamie.

"What the fuck happened to him?" Johnny asked.

"Ran into the authorities. Took the round as we were getting out of the van. Where's everyone else?" he said. Johnny stood up and began pacing.

"I dunno, I don't fucking know" he said.

"What happened?" Colin asked.

"We must've rushed through seven different road blocks set up all over this fucking city. The Warthog eventually ran outta steam at the last one. We killed everyone off, and then took separate cars. Only fucking god knows where they are" he said.

"Shit" Colin said.

"I'm telling you man, we were fucking set up" Johnny said, waving a shaky finger in Colin's face.

"Set up, what are you talking about?" Colin asked.

"You fucking saw it man. 12:00, right on the dot, bam! Fucking dropships hovering over us, dropping off those fucking Covenant Black Ops and marines. Not only that, but all the fucking road blocks. They knew we were there, we were fucking set up. Someone fucking ratted us out" Johnny said. Colin laughed. "What's so fucking funny?" Johnny growled.

"You man. Every fucking sentence, you said "fucking" Colin said.

"Because I'm fucking pissed and fucking scared man. We were set up! Those assholes probably know where the fuck we leave" Johnny screamed. Colin stood up and grabbed Johnny by the shoulder.

"Come on, let's get you washed up" he said. He led the heavy weapons expert to the kitchen, who was still yelling.

"Fucking set man. Not only that, my good friend is fucking dead. Wraith is dead, my fucking friend. Set up, fucking set up" he repeated. Colin turned on the sink and dipped a cloth into the hot water. He then rubbed it over Johnny's face, who sighed.

"Set up" he whispered. Colin used the cloth on his own face, and then grabbed a package of cigarettes. He took out two, offering one to Johnny, who took it and used Colin's lighter to light it. The two of them breathed in the toxic fumes for a minute, before Colin turned to look at the man.

"How could we have been set up, there was only six of us that knew about the plan" he said.

"That's what I'm saying, one of us ratted us out" Johnny growled.

"That's fucking bullshit man, no one ratted us out" Colin said.

"I'm telling you man, someone ratted us out" Johnny growled.

"I didn't fucking squeal, our leader wouldn't have squealed, he invented this fucking idea. It couldn't have been Wraith, he's dead. Like, seriously, this is bullshit, no one ratted us out" Colin said, shaking his head. Johnny looked down at Jamie.

"Probably that fucker" he said. Colin looked up.

"It wasn't Spirit. He was fucking shot by the police" Colin growled.

"To make it seem real, yeah" Johnny whispered, still looking at Jamie. Colin grabbed Johnny by the collar.

"Don't you fucking talk like that, he's a fucking kid, he didn't do shit" Colin yelled.

"Get your fucking hands off me" Johnny yelled, pushing Colin. Thompson's temper flared and he shoved Johnny, who fell backwards. Colin rushed at him and kicked him, but Johnny rolled away, and then grabbed his pistol. Colin took out his own pistol and pointed it down at Johnny, who pointed his weapon up at Colin.

"Don't fucking do this" Colin growled.

"You fucking ratted us out" Johnny yelled suddenly.

"I never ratted on nobody! Fucking nobody!" Colin yelled.

"You ladies really should learn to play nicely..."

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

Shadow Ops II: Nowhere to Run, Chapter Seven
Date: 15 November 2003, 4:35 AM

Chapter Seven

"You ladies should learn to play nicely..." Colin stood over Johnny Colbourne, who was lying on the floor. They both looked to the apartment door, pistols pointed at each other. Todd Maddox leaned against the door frame, sipping at a milkshake. Colin looked down at Johnny briefly, before stepping back, holstering his pistol. He held out his hand and helped the man up. Johnny dusted himself up, while Colin rounded on the tech specialist. There was something about his attitude and the way he seemed so calm that bothered him.

"Where the hell have you been?" he demanded. Todd shrugged, taking another sip of his milkshake.

"Eating my lunch" he said. Colin chuckled.

"We're wanted by all the UNSC and Covenant forces in this city, we've got a man wounded here, another man dead, and our leader is missing and you decided to get lunch?" Colin asked. Todd nodded, forcing Colin to laugh. "You stupid prick; you should've come back here first. We've been wondering where the hell you were" he growled. Todd simply shrugged again.

"I was hungry" he said. Colin shook his head and started pacing.

"You were hungry...I barely ate breakfast, but I ain't complaining you stupid shit head. I did what Shadow ordered and came here first, you should've done the exact same fucking thing" Colin yelled.

"Didn't feel like it" Todd said.

"You were trained to follow fucking orders, so why didn't you follow them. Shadow outranks you and you disobeyed his order to come here" Colin yelled. Todd shrugged. "Your shoulders are gonna fall off if you keep shrugging like that"

"Are you going to keep on barking little doggy, or are you going to bite?" Todd suddenly said. The words struck Colin and his eyes widened.

"What did you just say?" he asked. Todd chuckled and shook his head, tossing his milkshake container onto the couch. "No seriously, what did you say?" Colin asked again.

"Are you going to keep on barking little doggy, or are you going to bite?" Todd repeated. Colin bawled his fists and walked towards Todd, anger rising through him. Todd did the same however, grinning and cracking his knuckles. Johnny Colbourne, who had been checking on Jamie Fisher, jumped forward, stepping in between the two.

"That's enough! Shut up both of you, act like fucking professionals here. We should focus on the real fucking problem here" he yelled, pushing them both back.

"What's the problem?" Todd asked, still staring at Colin.

"We think someone ratted us out" Johnny said.

"Probably you, you little douche" Colin growled, glaring at Todd. Maddox however shook his head.

"Ain't me little doggy" he said. Colin leapt forward, shoving Johnny out of the way and punching Todd in the face. He stumbled backwards, surprised by the blow. Colin was about to move in again, but Johnny had gotten back up and pushed Colin back.

"That's fucking enough!" he yelled. Todd wiped the blood away from his mouth and shook his head.

"Pretty bad bite" he whispered. His attitude towards Colin and Johnny was a lot different and it bothered Colin to the extreme.

"Probably went and told the cops where we are, fucking pig" Colin growled.

"I just got some lunch, fries and a milkshake" Todd said, pointing to the empty carton on the couch. Colin decided to stop pursuing the subject and turned to another problem that he was having. Where were there stolen goods, or treasure as he liked to say.

"Who had our treasure?" he asked, referring to the stuff they had stolen.

"Shadow had given it to me, but the cops were on me for most of my trip back here, so I stashed them" he said.

"How many bags?" Colin asked.

"We managed to squeeze everything into one bag. It's down on Main Street, I can go get them" Johnny said. Todd looked up from the floor.

"Not yet, I have a surprise for you two" he said, standing and opening the door. Colin raised an eyebrow. Johnny turned around.

"It ain't my birthday" he said. Todd chuckled.

"Come down to the garage" he said.

"You got your little cops waiting down there?" Colin growled.

"Just forget about that for a minute and come see what I got" he said, walking into the hall. Johnny followed him. Colin slowly walked outside, his hand on his pistol. He followed the two men into an elevator, which took them to the garage. Todd walked out first, Johnny right behind him. Colin waited a few seconds, before following; looking all around him in case there was any police officers.

Todd had managed to steal an old Ford Focus car, which had a dull red color to it, along with the rust that had surrounded it. Todd took out the keys and went to the trunk of the car. He unlocked it and flipped it open. Johnny laughed out loud, while Colin tried to hide a smile that spread across his face.

A UNSC Marine Private was tied up in the back of the car. The young man looked up at the three Shadow Ops squad members, who grinned down at him. His hands and feet were tied, and a cloth had been tied around his mouth. His armor had been stripped off, along with his helmet and his gun belt. He wore nothing but a thick olive brown jumpsuit. Todd chuckled.

"Fucker tried to shoot my tires out" he said.

"Bad idea buddy" Johnny said, shaking his head and laughed. Colin leaned forward and grabbed him by one arm. Todd did the same with the other arm. They lifted him out of the trunk, and then took him back upstairs to their apartment.

"Play time" Colin said, grinning. They entered their room and tossed the marine onto the floor. Johnny and Colin advanced onto him, while Todd locked the door behind him.

"Are you the fucking sniper who killed our friend?" Johnny asked, leaned over. The private opened his mouth to speak, but Johnny kicked him in the stomach. "Don't fucking talk" he yelled. Colin sat him up and punched him in the face twice, before throwing him back to the floor.

"Trying to fuck up our plans, nice try" Colin growled, while Johnny punched him, and then kicked him in the stomach again. Todd merely stood back and grinned, watching the two men torture the marine. While Johnny continued to punch and kick him, Colin grabbed a chair and threw the marine onto it. Todd grabbed some duck tape and strapped the marine to the chair. Johnny still stood over him, punching him continuously in the face and torso. Colin held him back for a moment, and then kneeled in front of him.

"What's your name?" he asked. The marine just glared at him. Colin punched him, and then grabbed his face. "What's your fucking name?" he yelled.

"Williams!" the marine yelled. Colin punched him again.

"Don't yell at me. Who told you about our operation going on at that bank?" he demanded.

"How the fuck should I know, I'm just a private, I follow orders" the marine said, spitting blood out onto the floor.

"Who gave the order?" Colin asked.

"General Banton, ONI official" the marine named Williams said.

"Did this Banton mention anything about him having a secret contact with the enemy?" Colin said.

"No, just said that when he gave the signal, we attack whoever is in the bank" Williams said. Colin punched him twice in the stomach, then in the face.

"Fucking liar" Colin growled.

"No, it's the truth" Williams screamed, spitting out more blood. Colin took a step back, and stood over him. He looked up to see Johnny Colbourne run into his bedroom, then emerge quickly, carrying a baseball bat. Colin grinned and accepted the weapon, looking down at the marine.

"No, please, I'm telling you the truth" he said.

"Who is General Banton's contact?" Colin asked.

"I don't know, I fucking swear to God" the marine said. Colin swung the bat around him hit the marine across the face. He cried out in pain and spat up more blood. Johnny punched him in the face again.

"Making a fucking mess" he growled, taking a step back to massage his swollen knuckled. The marine was panting heavily, blood seeping from the cuts and tears on his face. Without warning, Colin swung the bat again, hitting him below the chin. The marine's head flew back, a trail of blood arching in the air.

"Talk!" Colin yelled.

"I don't know anything!" the marine yelled. Colin was about to hit him, but the bat was caught by Todd, who had stepped forward.

"Let's take a break, we should get the treasure" he suggested. Colin glared at him.

"Who died and made you fucking in charge?" he growled.

"I dunno I just feel we should get the treasure" Todd said. Johnny nodded.

"I actually agree the spot where I stashed it has been used before by other criminals" he said. Colin hit the marine one last time with the bat across the back of his head, and then dropped the weapon.

"Fine" he said.

"Me and Shade will get it" Johnny suggested. Colin looked up at Todd.

"I don't fucking trust this asshole to stay here" he said. Todd laughed.

"I captured this marine, what does it take to prove to you that I'm not the rat?" he asked.

"Change of fucking attitude, you act as if nothing is wrong at all, when there is something wrong" he said. Todd shrugged.

"I try to ignore the obvious and focus good things" he said. Colin shook his head.

"Fine, I'm not wasting my time with you. Let's go Death, we'll get the treasure and come back here. Hopefully Shadow will be back" Colin said. Johnny nodded and walked to the door, grabbing the keys to the car he had stolen. Colin gave one last long glare to Todd, before following Johnny out into the hallway and slamming the door behind him.

Todd Maddox watched the door slam shut, then sighed. He turned around to look down at the marine, who had his head bowed, letting blood drip from his wounds.

"Finally, all alone" he said. Laughing silently, Todd walked up to the kitchen, taking his body armor off, so that he wore nothing but his black jumpsuit. He stretched his arms around, sighing for a long time, and then walked back down to the marine, who looked up at him.

"Jesus, they really did a number on ya" Todd said, grabbed the side of the man's face. As he pulled it away, the marine's blood stuck to his hand. Snarling, Todd wiped it over the marine's uniform. He stood still for a second, looking out the window, then turned to the large TV that still overlooked them.

"You like music?" he asked the marine. Williams simply stared at Todd, who smiled and turned the radio on.

"I'm a fan of all kinds of music you know, anything that gets me going" he said, flipping through the various stations.

"...that was Youth of the Nation, by POD. Next on our request hour, More Human Than Human, by Rob Zombie. Been awhile since we've heard this. This is More Human Than Human, on Mix99" a voice said through the large speakers. The sound of an electric guitar, with a synthesizer affecting its sound blared into the room, closely followed by Rob Zombie's deep voice. Todd began nodding his head to the beat, and stood up.

"Good song" he said. He walked to the centre of the room, climbing over Jamie Fisher, and then began to dance. He twirled around a little, and then moved backwards and forward, shaking his head and humming the words. He slowly began to dance closer to the marine, who was trying to back off. Without any warning at all, Todd reached into his pocket and pulled out a large knife. He leapt forward, sitting himself on the marine's lap and with one large swipe, cut his ear off.

William's eyes went wide and he screamed until his voice went hoarse. Blood poured out of the side of his head, while Todd stood beside him, looking at the ear in his hand. He laughed, turning it over and wiping the blood off it. He then raised it to his mouth.

"Hey, hello? Is this thing on? Can you hear me?" he said into it, while Williams continued to scream. Todd chuckled and tossed the knife aside. He set the ear down beside Jamie, and then went into his room. He emerged a second later with a canister of gasoline in his hands. Williams looked up at Todd and his eyes widened.

"No, wait!" he yelled. Todd opened the canister and splashed gasoline all over the marine, who screamed louder as his wounds began to burn slightly. He moved his head from side to side, trying to avoid the spray of the dangerous liquid that was covering him. With what gasoline was left, Todd made a small trail of it to the door, and then tossed the canister aside. He took out a lighter and lighted it, grinning at Williams.

"Please, I beg you, don't do this. Don't burn me, please. I don't know anything, I'm just a private, please don't. I have a family, a wife, two kids, please" he said. Todd first lighted a cigarette he put in his mouth, and then held the lighter over the gasoline.

"Please! Don't do it!" Williams screamed. Todd laughed, and was about to drop it, when bullets fired from an M6D pistol slammed into his body. Todd's upper torso and stomach area literally exploded as round after round slammed into him. The holes in his body let loose fountains of blood. Todd fell against the wall beside the door, and slowly slide to the floor, a large trail of blood scraped along the wall. The psychotic Shadow Ops tech specialist was dead....

TO BE CONTINUED
By: Nemesis (aka Agent Shade)

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