Evenfall (168 page)

At the rear of the building there were two additional examination rooms, the back exit and the door which led to the staircase. They needed to head downstairs to the basement in order to reach the tunnel entrance but before going there, Archer indicated them to stop in front of one of the rooms. Banks, Green and Williams stayed fanned out across the hallway and rear exit to stay alert for any sign of the enemy while Sin stood in the doorway to the room watching Archer and Jared work.

Together, they lifted Shield onto a table where he grimaced and laid back, the sheen of sweat now coating his skin so thoroughly he looked as though he'd been doused in water. His forehead was cool to the touch and he was absolutely coated in blood. Archer didn't seem to notice these points, or perhaps he simply chose not to make it obvious how dire Shield's situation was. He found a roll of bandages and in his typical manner, quickly and efficiently bound Shield's wound as best he could in a short amount of time. Shield hissed at the treatment and made a soft, pathetic groan that caused Jared to watch him with a mixture of guilt and disquiet.

It didn't take long for Archer to finish and although it had seemed like he would probably leave without saying anything, he leaned close to Shield and said quietly, "We'll be back for you, Agent." They left Shield lying on table and exited the room, closing the door behind them.

If there were still enemies in the building, it was obvious that they would be found exactly where the team was headed; in the basement. It put them in the difficult position of managing to get down the completely darkened staircase and down into the basement, where they could be ambushed at any time. In the end Archer opened the door carefully, everyone staying to the side as they did so and Banks tossed in a couple of light sticks, mostly to see if anyone inside would react to the sudden movement.

Nothing happened immediately and Sin slipped inside, crouching down and pressing himself against the wall as he glanced around the area. Through the green glow of his goggles, Sin could see the two bodies that lay sprawled on the staircase. There were no doubts that they were the two remaining members of Jared's team and when Archer slipped inside, he shook his head grimly. He motioned for Jared and Green to remain outside the door to guard the rear exit and hall so that their backs were protected as Williams and Banks slipped inside the stairwell.

It was silently and simultaneously understood that Sin would go down first and he did so without hesitation, stepping around the bodies silently as he disappeared into the pitch blackness that lay below. His boots moved noiselessly down the stairs and as he went down the second flight, he could make out the outline of a man standing near the basement door in the darkness. The man was leaning against the wall, twirling something in his hand and it was obvious from his body language that he didn't sense that anyone was behind him.

Sin crept down slowly, slipping his knife out of his belt and before the man had a chance to react, the blade was drawn across his throat. Sin cradled the body and moved to the side, propping it against the wall as he slipped out another light stick and signaled the others to come down; the brightness of the green glow was a quicker and easier way to signal than using a flashlight. As he did so, he leaned closer to the heavy door and could hear the faint sound of voices on the other side although he couldn't understand exactly what was being said.

Within seconds Archer, Williams and Banks crowded the stairwell and as Sin shoved the light stick back into his pocket, he indicated the corpse on the floor and the fact that the enemy was obviously also using night-vision goggles. He then pointed to the door and gestured that there were at least three people on the other side. Archer immediately responded by pulling a stun grenade off his belt and first pointing to the door, then himself and Sin. It was likely that the people on the other side would hesitate before attacking immediately after the door opened since it could very well be their own comrade, and that brief moment would be the key to the plan working successfully.

Archer grabbed the door handle and turned it, pushing the door open slightly. The conversation on the other side came to an abrupt halt and that fraction of a second of hesitation was just enough time for Archer to throw the stun grenade inside and slam the door shut again. Within seconds there was the sound of a loud blast, muffled on their end by the steel door, and Archer yanked the door open quickly as he and Sin dove into the room to take advantage of the momentarily stunned intruders. Not only were their ears effected by the blast but night vision goggles had a tendency to strongly amplify the already blinding flash of the grenade.

There were four men in the main room immediately on the other side of the door and between the short, controlled blasts from Archer's MP5 and Sin's accurate shooting, all of them were down in under twenty seconds with little to no resistance due to the effects of the grenade. Williams and Banks moved into the cleared area and Archer signaled for them to investigate the hallway to the left as he and Sin made their way down the right side.

The entire basement was nothing more than several wide open spaces that were designated for equipment storage and other supplies with a large electrical room at the back. The hatch door that actually led down to the tunnel was very subtle and had probably been ignored and forgotten about in the many years of disuse but as they approached the area that it was located in, it was obvious that it wasn't being ignored anymore.

Given the gunfire that had just occurred in the next room, the masked intruders weren't caught off guard this time. Sin and Archer ducked for cover as soon as they entered the area that housed the hatch as gunshots were fired at them from three directions. There was a brief stand off from across the room and it was only when Banks and Williams entered and provided a distraction that Sin get the chance to unload his shotgun into the small group. They didn't go down quickly or easily though and one managed to shoot Williams in the leg just before he died. Thankfully it wasn't more than a flesh wound and he still had enough mobility to be useful to the team.

They secured the area quickly, ensuring that there were no enemies anywhere else in the basement or in the immediate area below them in the tunnel. Banks went back to find Jared and Green, who would remain in the basement to secure the entrance as Jared's team was originally supposed to do, and after a brief exchange of instructions the rest of the team climbed down the long ladder and into the darkness of the tunnel, making their way to the tower.

==

Despite Andrew's warnings of the dangers in the residential areas, Boyd, Andrew, Lowe and Thomas didn't run into any more snipers or enemies along the way. That was primarily due to the fact that other agents appeared to have passed through the area shortly before they'd arrived, judging by the combination of slain Agency employees and masked bodies that were sprawled out along the sidewalk and behind bushes. Boyd and the others didn't stop to look for their allies to see if they were in the area still; it would have delayed them getting inside to check on the building and they couldn't trust that other intruders wouldn't come to replace the ones who had fallen. This was their chance to infiltrate Complex C without a fight and they took the chance quickly.

However, the damage to Complex C did not look promising; there were massive chunks missing in the lower levels, leaving rubble and broken cement in its wake. The metal structure of the building was still relatively
intact
; the upper floors hadn't caved in but with fourteen floors rising above the severely damaged foundation, it could only be a matter of time before the structure became too unstable to be safe. As they headed into the building, they could see bodies strewn across the debris; the victims appeared to be people who had still been asleep when the complex was hit, or who had been crushed while trying to escape. Boyd thankfully didn't recognize anyone as they passed by but that wasn't saying much since he couldn't see a lot of faces and in some cases the corpses had been reduced to body parts.

Andrew, Lowe and Thomas looked between the bodies and the way ahead with tense shoulders; Andrew especially seemed to be affected and his loping stroll became more of an angry stride as they headed deeper into the building. Without the night vision goggles, Boyd could tell they would have had a very difficult time navigating the area. Not only was it dark out, but the air was filled with smoke and dust from the collapsed building, making it hard to breathe in some places without wanting to cough continuously. He held his shirt over his mouth and nose as he passed through a particularly heavy cloud and noticed the others do the same.

In spite of the severe damage, it was exactly as the generals had noted; there were no fires to put out and no other damage than the structural collapse. It suggested that rather than using bombs the enemy had actually rigged the lower floors for demolition, probably with TNT and nitroglycerin, and had weakened the structure. If they had demolished the entire lower floors properly, it would have caused the building to implode and collapse in on itself but that kind of project would have taken weeks to months of prior preparation. Instead, it appeared as though they had created enough damage to weaken the structure considerably but not enough to destroy the entire building while still causing a suitable enough distraction for whatever they intended to do.

As they made their way into the building and through the rubble, they didn't see any living residents or intruders and with such a large building there was no point in searching in a group of four. They decided to split into two groups to more efficiently search for enemies or any allies that may be in the area so that they could direct them to the bunker for orders. They decided to split up; one group would start on the lower floors and move upward while the other would head to the top and work downward. It made the most sense for Boyd and Andrew to head toward the top while Thomas and Lowe started on the lower levels. One main reason was that Andrew and Boyd both knew that they each wanted to check on Ryan on the fifteenth floor and for that they'd be heading in the same direction. In addition to that, Thomas and Lowe had worked together previously and understood each other's style so they seemed satisfied pairing up and appeared comfortable with the decision.

Andrew and Boyd moved quietly upward through the building, slipping in and out of the stairwells as they ran into places they couldn't pass through or heard sounds of unknown origin ahead. Andrew seemed intent on taking control of the situation, not because he seemed to be power-hungry but because he seemed more passionate about getting back at the enemy and deciding how to do so.

He seemed to be a little more reckless than Boyd; there were a few times when he intended to wait to get a better idea of the area ahead of them while Andrew seemed primarily interested in making sure no one was immediately around the corner or obviously in the way before he headed in. Boyd suspected that was due to a difference in training. While he and Sin were trained in subterfuge and assassination, Andrew's unit was trained specifically to stop terrorists and prevent the kinds of things that Boyd and Sin did to others, from happening to their allies. The end result was his style of fighting being more upfront than stealthy, which could also be due to the fact that he was used to being with a team on assignments rather than solo or with only one other person to have his back.

They didn't see many people around for the most part but in some areas in the lower levels, the dust had yet to dissipate fully and it greatly hampered visibility. Sometimes they could hear low talking but the people speaking never seemed to be in the places he and Andrew were passing through and it was difficult to tell if it was residents of the building making their way out or if they were the enemy. As they moved as quickly as possible, Boyd noticed Andrew glancing at him occasionally, almost as if he wanted to say something. Andrew had briefly introduced himself when they'd initially left the bunker and Boyd had barely done more than say his own name back. Given the tense situation and how intent they both were on the mission, it was no surprise that they hadn't had much in the way of conversations.

They passed through an empty hallway connected to the stairwell that would take them toward the area of fifteenth floor that Ryan's apartment was situated. As Boyd paused at a corner and Andrew headed around first, he was finally tired of being distracted by Andrew's occasional glances so he looked at him directly and asked quietly, "What?"

Andrew didn't answer for a moment but finally gave a one shouldered shrug. "Nothing. Ryan just told me a little about you, is all."

Boyd considered that briefly, then said, "I see." He paused; he could have left it at that but he had to admit he was somewhat interested in the person Ryan had been seeing. He also wondered what Ryan had said about him. "Was it anything interesting?"

The other man's mouth quirked up into a slight grin. "Depends on what you think is interesting. Mostly it was about how awesome you are and how everyone sucks for not thinking so as well. He mentioned your partner too."

Boyd couldn't help a smirk at that; Ryan never changed. "I suspect he had rave reviews for Sin, too," he said mildly.

Andrew shrugged again as they entered Ryan's floor. "He didn't go on about him nearly as much. He mainly kept trying to tell me that Vega isn't as bad as everyone says and that he isn't as scary as he looks."

"Well, I won't argue with that assessment," Boyd said quietly.

They continued silently down the hallway and would have kept going but Boyd heard the faintest of sounds. He paused and turned his head toward Andrew; it was difficult to read expressions with the night goggles covering most of their faces but he could tell well enough what he was thinking. Boyd jerked his chin toward the hallway and Andrew nodded then followed him as they headed toward the source of the noise.