The prey was running. And he wasn't going to stop running until he dropped dead.
The whole time he felt it. He couldn't see it, or hear it now, but he knew it was there. And he was sure he wasn't going to stop to find out.
Until it happened.
He stopped abruptly. He stood still, not daring to look back. What had that been? He was sure he had seen something move out of the corner of his eye. Something big. How was something that big able to not make a sound?
No. Don't stop. You're dead if you do. Or worse. Much worse.
He continued his pace, though it was hard for him to pick up the pace. He could only hope that his second wind would come quickly. But now the feeling was much more palpable.
It was something strange, like an invisible being that surrounded him, leading him into a trap in the very center of the forest. An inexplicable anxiety took hold of him. His steps, which at first were firm and fast, began to falter.
Soon he began to go at a slow and hesitant pace. The forest began to take on a more sinister appearance, the largest trees began to take on a darker color, as if they were thousand-year-old oaks. Everything began to look more confusing. Was it perhaps fatigue? Now all the courage was being absorbed by something that lurked around him.
He continued, although with difficulty. His nerves were about to burst. But when he reached a clearing in the forest, his discomfort turned into fear.
Then the world trembled beneath his feet. An incredible pressure fell on him, it was a strange force that made him tremble with fear, not only because of the force, but also because of the disgusting and gloomy sensation he felt throughout his body.
That's when he heard the first noises, like moans carried by the wind. They started as murmurs at first, then they precipitated into a series of incomprehensible but impressive sounds. They were heard from everywhere: from the trees, from the sky, from the earth, they were heard in the distance and at the same time it was as if someone was whispering in their ears.
Even at that moment, both because of the chill it caused and because of the incomprehensibility of the words, he did not know what they were saying. He felt cornered, desperate to get out of that place, wishing that whatever was doing that would appear and attack them once and for all.
As quickly as it had arrived, the orgy of voices disappeared. He opened his eyes after having closed them in panic but he did not dare to remove his hands from his ears.
A dark abyss opened above him. The most terrible of all the disgusting sensations he felt that day, but now taking a tangible form.
"It was fun while it lasted."
The voice that spoke those words was something out of this reality. It was completely understandable but it was imposing, it was a very strong voice, not that it was deep, but it was impressive in every way. It paralyzed every nerve in his body. It was not magic, but a feeling as old as humanity itself. Fear.
The temperature dropped, the air became heavier. This was no longer just despair. It was the attributes that decorated a murder, that darkened a battlefield after the war, that was placed under every man and woman in the world who had seen more than was allowed and whose retaliation was to know the origin of that feeling. Evil had arrived.
It was pitch black. He was just standing there, looking down. He was dressed entirely in black, some sort of assault armor or combat suit. His arms were huge and bulky as were his legs that reminded him of iron pillars used in construction. But all vision of sanity ended at his head. A mask covered the intruder's face, the shape was strange, it looked like one of those military-style gas masks, but upon closer inspection it was undoubtedly a modified creation, as it lacked the components that would allow a person to breathe. It was black and covered the entire skull down to the neck, it had no particular markings except for what appeared to be an implement with openings from which the grim words came out.
But the scariest thing was the two lenses that allowed them to see outside. They were circular with a short frame and were a very bright red color. And even though it was dark, they shone without the need for any light. Those enormous lenses looked at them, penetrating them. And when the feeling of terror could not be endured for a second longer, the dark man spoke.
"Scheiße. And it's that I have so few opportunities to stretch my legs. Well, figuratively speaking."
Then the dark man jumped, cutting the distance between them, dropping all his weight. The distance to the ground was considerable, but even so, without the slightest scratch or effort, the subject fell as if he had descended from a step.
The man-thing raised his right arm and it split into two, only to separate into more parts and rearrange itself as a machine gun emerged from the joint of his shoulder and took the place where his arm had only been a moment ago.
The dark man looked at the prey and then looked at his own arm. Just as he had pulled it out he retracted the weapon again, although this time he had been much faster.
With the same newly formed arm he brought his hand to his waist to pull out a combat blade. The prey saw that it was darkened by rust and dried blood.
"As I said, I am given few opportunities."
The dark man took a few steps towards the prey.
"That's why I'll do everything possible to enjoy it."
Proyecto Corvus
Action Report
Post-Mission File
Mission: Operation Sledgehammer
Status: Successful
Date: ███/██/███
Mission Leader: General Matiaz E. Iturriaga
Teams Involved: Strike Team "Pretty Boys" and Large Scale Assault Team and Heavy Support "Unit 31".
Casualties: Four wounded, two dead.
Cost: $50,000 worth of equipment, $10,000 worth of miscellaneous material.
Profit: $120,000 worth of paper money; approximately $2,000,000 worth of drugs, weapons, and stolen merchandise; three Vertigo-class anomalies and one Xeno-class anomaly, not counting one anomaly sold to MC&D for $10,000.
Preamble
Operation Sledgehammer was the final mission that led to the annihilation of the remnants of GoI-███: The Crimson Hammer, wiping out all former GoI elements throughout Central America. The operation was able to be carried out due to several predominant factors, including the acquisition of information by Insurgency intelligence from captured agents and the various files provided by GRU Division P as part of the mutual aid agreement. However, the decisive factor was the use of Project Corvus assets, especially the famous "Unit 31", whose actions were what made the difference during the final encounters with the enemy forces.
The enemy base of the GoI was located in the Bosque de las Lomas, in Mexico City, in a little known area; the information was transmitted by several cartel bosses associated with the Insurgency who had been instructed long before to report any unusual activity that did not involve the Insurgency itself. Several bosses were informed by their men of noticing unusual activity in this area, known to be the preferred area among cartels for negotiations and drug sale arrangements. The base went unnoticed for a long time because it was known to be the facilities of several Russian families that served as a connection with the Russian mafia and the Mexican cartels. Several strange events led to suspicions of these supposed Russian mobsters which led to an investigation and subsequent evaluation that revealed their true nature, as the main facility of the Scarlet Hammer. The greatest proof that would confirm all suspicions however was the sighting of PoI-049: Vasili Sokolov.1, who was given priority for capture or elimination due to his hierarchy in the organization as well as being the only anomalous humanoid in the base
The Mission
At 0100 hours the "Pretty Boys" and "Unit 31" teams were installed in the vicinity of the main building of the organization, just 2 km away. The attack began at 0200 with the activation of the "Human Kamikaze"2, In this case, two members of the ██████ Cartel who had come to do business, had been inadvertently given the infohazard on a previous mission with the Insurgency. The code word was transmitted via momentary interference with the radio of one of the guards at the entrance, and was heard by the exposed subjects. The explosions killed over ███ members and collapsed part of the main entrance, allowing a direct assault by Strike Team "Pretty Boys." Ten minutes after the initial attack, Strike Team "Unit 31" was given permission to advance and provide support to the first team.
At first the surprise attack had a great effect in decimating the personnel within the building. It was only a few minutes later that some groups in the lower levels began using some anomalous weapons in their possession. These caused most of the casualties due to their poor understanding of their use, but once their similarity to some prototypes used by the GRU Division P was connected, Unit 31 used a ████████ that the team carries as part of their standard armament and disabled the weapons. Just to ensure no more casualties Unit 31 took it upon themselves to finish off all the remaining members from here on out. Agent Rekrut led the team in taking out over ██ members of the Scarlet Hammer himself. However, no trace of the POI was found anywhere in the building.
The observation team at the garrison found the POI a couple of kilometers outside the compound, heading into the forest. It was later discovered that the POI escaped through an underground tunnel that connected from the basement of the building to an exit in the forest. Agent Rekrut set out to pursue the POI without waiting for authorization from Central Command. However, Command itself realized that Rekrut was the best option, both due to his ability to reach the target in a short time or even track it, and due to his biomechanical nature that would make him immune to the anomalous effect of the POI.
By 0400 hours, all remaining personnel of the Scarlet Hammer were deployed and the building was detonated with heavy charges by Unit 31, but not before removing all valuable items from it. Central Command inquired about Agent Rekrut's location, but no member was able to follow his path into the forest. Twenty minutes later, the Agent returned without the POI. Demanding answers, the Agent told Central Command that he had taken charge of his "prey" and told them to just follow the tracker signal he had placed near the body. A recovery team was dispatched and confirmed, albeit with difficulty, the identity of the body as that of the POI. At 4:45 AM the mission was confirmed successful by Central Command.
First of all I want to congratulate the men who gave their lives for the cause, as well as their dedication to those who fought for the ideals of this organization. However I must point out the lack of respect on the part of Agent Rekrut who seems more than willing to disobey orders more often than not. As much as we have the ability to blow him up whenever we want it doesn't change the fact that we can't threaten him with this at the risk of him taking drastic action. Seriously. We were lucky that among the files that the GRU Division P gave us were the files of the POI along with his medical record, since only by his dental history were we able to identify him; that and the fact that Rekrut didn't pull out all his teeth. The guy looked like a bloody pulp when we found him. Just something for Miss Cornelia Kooper and Delta Command to take into account.
- General Iturriaga