TW - Gore

LEO
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21/01/2003
Panay, The Philippines
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It's been a fucking week since Nova decided to start spoon feeding the terrorist. What information have we got out of him? Fuck all. Absolutely fucking nothing.

"I can't believe he still hasn't said anything, especially to Nova. She's been watching over him like a hawk to see if he's going to slip up." Jed mumbles, wiping his hands across his face in frustration.

"Give it some more time, these things take a while." Tara shrugs, laying across the floor in front of us doing some sit-ups. I don't know where the fuck she gets this constant energy, I don't think I've ever watched her sit still for more than three damn seconds.

"Yeah, but we don't have a while Tara. Lives are at stake here!" He groans.

There's definitely something going on between these two, even a blind man could spot it.

"Alright, alright, don't get all moody with me, I'm just trying to reassure 'ya!" She says in her usual chirrup. Jed mumbles something incoherent and folds his head down to rest against his knees.

Nobody really knows what to do with themselves, we're in complete limbo. Everyone is aimlessly pacing around base like zombies 24/7. There's not a whole bunch we can do until we get a tiny ounce of information. Not even our intel has been able to track anything down yet.

This is quite literally the most helpless I've felt on a mission in my entire life.

North suddenly bursts out of building 'A' like a madman, immediately gaining out attention. His entire face is ashen to the bone, looking like a gust of wind could just send him flying off into a million tiny particles.

He spots us three and immediately signals us over. Tara quickly stops her workout and hops to her feet next to me and Jed, all of us jogging over to meet with North.

"What the fuck is going on?" I seethe with complete urgency, he doesn't say anything and just gestures for us to come inside; all three of us complying immediately.

Striding into the room, We're met with Vincent, Kingston, and the ominous glow of North's open laptop screen. I already have a gut-wrenching feeling of exactly where this is going.

"They've killed another one." He murmurs, sitting down in front of his laptop and rewinding a video.

The only difference is, there's no writing at the start of this one. It's just straight into the scene, that unfortunately familiar scene.

The second the masked executer opens his mouth, all of our jaws drop in sync.

He's an American.

'You have one of our own. Give him back. Until then, these hostages pay the price.'

And with that, he yanks up the head of a woman by the back of her hair.

At first it looks like she's alive, eyes are wide open; until the camera moves slightly.

There's nothing below her neck.

It's just a head.

Tara retches beside me, and I don't blame her. Out of all the blood and guts I've seen in my career, this level of gore is something else. I have to divert my gaze from the screen as the camera pans down to her naked, beheaded body; surrounded by pints worth of thick crimson blood, seeping through the blades of grass.

I don't know what's more shocking. The fact that they went to this level of brutality, or the fact that the executor is one of our own citizens.

North shuts his laptop quickly. He wasn't even watching in the first place; I think that video is definitely one of the things you can only view one time around.

"Oh my fucking God..." Jed murmurs next to me, voice muffled by his hand over his mouth.

"Why the fuck is an American doing this? You mentioned this whole thing seemed to be focused on Anti-Americanism." I mutter, still in complete disbelief.

"I have no idea, but it's made the situation more confusing than it already is. They want their fucking man back, but we haven't gotten a damn inch of information out of him yet!" North seethes, grabbing a book and lashing it across the room.

Tara hesitates for a second in her thoughts before speaking, "where was this video sent to? The States government or-"

"Us. It was sent directly to Kingston's email. Which means they already fucking know who we are. They're wiping their damn asses with us." He hisses, desperately feeling for something else to lash at the wall for some sort of anger relief.

It hits me like a ton of fucking bricks.

It's one of our own who's feeding this information to them. It adds up completely. An American is within that group, an American with a southern accent.

"There's a traitor." I say confidently, earning a shocked expression from everyone else in the room. Has nobody else seriously considered this?

"Leo, what do you m-" Jed starts before I interrupt him abruptly.

"Think about it! They've been prepared for every goddamn retaliation we've planned! They knew that we were flying into GPR. They knew to fucking catch us off guard. Now they've got your fucking email address, Commander! It has to be one of our own. We've done absolutely everything to keep this operation as covert as possible, yet they seem to fucking know everything we're thinking! They even know we have one of their group, how else would they know that?"

I don't think I've taken a single breath since I started my speech.

"There's somebody from Fleetwood in on this. Somebody who's been planning this for a long fucking time with their group. It's as though they want to lore us in so they can fucking wipe us out. That damn group couldn't have this much information unless it's being spoon fed to them!"

A stressed look of realisation engrains into every single one of their faces, apart from North's. Naturally, the only other person in this group with a Southern accent springs to mind, the only other person who's been with the terrorist the whole damn time, literally spoon feeding him.

Nova fucking Shields.

Without a single other word to any of them, I sprint out of the doors; heading right towards building C.

I don't think I've ever kicked in a door with more force than I do just now, practically sending it swinging off of its hinges. Nova, who is perched on the opposite side of the room from the terrorist, whips her head around with a shocked look on her face.

"Leo? What's wr-"

Before she gets another word in, I stride over and rag her up by her hair, pushing her head against the wall and pinning her there.

"You conniving bitch, this has been your plan all along hasn't it? To lore us out!"

I yank her head backwards and push her straight into the wall again, emitting a small shriek. At this point, Jed, Tara and all three Commanders have hurried the room.

"Hendrix! What in God's name are you doing!?" North screeches, yanking me backwards and away from her and launching me to the other side of the room. Nova turns around from the wall, her nose bleeding slightly.

"It's her! She's the fucking one who's been giving them information!" I yell, trying to claw back at her.

"No she's fucking not, Hendrix! Pull yourself together!" North commands furiously, blocking my path.

"How do we know? It makes perfect sense, she's been in here the whole time with him! Fucking looking after him, feeding him-"

"It's not her."

An unfamiliar, foreign voice suddenly speaks quietly into the chaos, causing all of our heads to jolt in the direction of the terrorist.

"What do you mean, 'it's not her'?" I hiss at him.

"It's not her. I've been in 'room all week. She 'been trying to get information, not help." He says, more confidently this time despite the language barrier.

"It's true, Hendrix! You think we haven't been fucking monitoring her conversations with him!? Turns' she figured out there was a traitor a lot sooner than you lot fucking did! She's spent the whole fucking week trying to wring it out of him!" North seethes, complete fury in his eyes.

It dawns on me like I've been hit by a truck as I glance over at her, watching her wipe her bloodied nose as Tara wraps an arm around her.

What the fuck have I done?

I immediately go to walk in her direction but Jed blocks me with his arm, shaking his head.

"I don't think that's a good idea at the minute, Leo." He says quietly, giving me a warning glare as he continues to shake his head.

"Nova, I'm so sorr-" I try and speak to her over Jed's arm.

"Fuck you, Hendrix." She growls at me, cutting me right off as Tara leads her out of the room, glancing at me angrily over her shoulder.

I don't think I've ever felt more ashamed of myself than I do right now.

"Hendrix, come with me right fucking now." North seethes, grabbing my arm and yanking me out of the room.

—

"I don't know what type of fucking stunt you just pulled, but it was a huge fucking mistake!" He yells, standing on the other side of the table as his fingernails grip into the wood.

"You don't have to tell me that. I know I've majorly fucked up." I murmur, completely disappointed in myself.

"Of all officers, why would Nova be the fucking traitor!? I don't know how much you know about her past, but she's had it so damn rough! The whole reason she went into this field was to go against the scum of the earth, not work alongside them!" He screams at me.

He's painfully right. Why would Nova do that? What the fuck got into me?

"Now, I don't know how well she'll accept it, but you owe her a massive fucking apology! She's one of the most damn trustworthy officers I've ever known!"

"In fact, I'd say you are more fucking likely to be the son of a bitch working against us, anyone else would be for that matter! She's barely slept all week, I've been watching from CCTV since there's a goddamn camera in the room! All she's done is try to weed information out of him, and she gets a bashed fucking nose for that?!"

For once; once in my whole damn life, I'm completely silent on the topic of Nova Shields. I have nothing to defend myself with, and I have absolutely no damn right to even make an attempt. The only reply I can possibly give is a small nod.

"I'll go and speak to her now." I mumble, standing up; but North shakes his head quickly.

"No, not right now. She's in with Rosa, give it a few hours. I'm so fucking ashamed, Hendrix. I thought you were better than this."

He sighs, seeming to have calmed down slightly, "I can't say that if it was anyone else, I wouldn't blame you. It does appear suspicious, but this is Nova we're talking about. You may have had some severe differences with her, but I think deep down even you realise she wouldn't do this."

Once again, he's right. She wouldn't do this, and I am such a fucking fool for thinking she was capable.

Instead, I just sit in the deafening silence of my guilt.