Separation, Anxiety

[notjustaface]

It hadn't been a particularly hard mission, at least not by comparison to some of the stunts they've managed in the last ten years, but there was one fatal point where it could fall apart. Face had approximately sixty seconds to make it from tunnel to the next - a journey that shouldn't take more than forty-five seconds - before enemy's defensive explosion went off leaving him not only trapped but pinned down and unable to escape assuming he survived the event.

An unexpected sniper cut thirty seconds off the time he had. He was four seconds too late... just behind enough the blast didn't take him out - but not out. He was trapped behind the line, and utterly fucked.

"Put her in the air, Captain." Hannibal says softly, staring at the plume of dust and debris for any sign that Face had made it through last second. There was none.

Comments

[notthatcrazy]

He knows Hannibal well enough to sense that he's had an idea, but he knows better than to interrupt him. He pulls his jacket tighter around himself as he leans in to look.

[notjustaface]

Hannibal leans forward, setting down his drink to trace the old route as the other hand withdraws a pencil from his breast pocket.

"It's a long shot..." he barely whispers, licking his lower lip.

[notthatcrazy]

He sighs.

"Seems like everything we do's a long shot."

Still... a slim chance is better than none.

[notjustaface]

It's different when it's a situation like this - an extraction that just might be a funeral.

After a long moment, he sighs again and downs the remainder of his drink before saying; "If we go in through this mineshaft, we'll come out behind their border and about half a mile from the cave-in."

They could start there, and assuming they don't find a body...

[notthatcrazy]

It's definitely high-stakes, in more ways than one... but it wouldn't be the first time they pulled off the seemingly impossible.

"It'll be tough."

[notjustaface]

"That's an understatement, Captain."

Hannibal stares back down at the map before hesitantly plugging the fresh cigar in the corner of his mouth. "We'll want to avoid a firefight - we'll be easily outgunned... ten to one at best."

[notthatcrazy]

"I know," he replies to both statements.

It'll take a great deal of sneakiness to pull this off, and they're not exactly known for their subtlety.

[notjustaface]

His brain is going faster than he can articulate as the plan falls together.

"We can do a two man strike team - you'll be back at the mineshaft preparing for the worst if we have to make a hasty retreat."

It doesn't even occur to him that the likelihood of Murdock letting BA go in instead of him is slim to nil.

[notthatcrazy]

He's a bit torn oh it. While he knows that BA's logically the better choice, logic is taking a backseat to emotion.

"I'd like to go in first on this one."

[notjustaface]

It'd be a lot easier of a decision if it wasn't their best sniper they were going in for - BA could take down any of them hand to hand and made the better choice for backup.

But all the same, he can understand the request.

"I don't think that's the right choice, this is a stealth operation..."

[notthatcrazy]

He sighs.

"You're probably right. I just..."

He trails off, unable to articulate what he's feeling.

"I just can't get left behind this time."

He's always the backup. It's not going to work now.

[notjustaface]

Pulling away from the table, Hannibal lights his cigar and sinks back into an uncomfortable chair, drawing on it several times before giving a silent half-nod.

Eventually, he asks; "Are you sure you're ready to see the worst case scenario?"

[notthatcrazy]

He gives this some serious thought.

"I can promise I'm not gonna break down while the heat's on. That's the best I can do."

[notjustaface]

He puffs a little harder, exhaling with a soft sigh.

"Is there anything I could say to dissuade you?"

[notthatcrazy]

He looks him square in the eye again.

"Probably not."

[notjustaface]

He nods again, slow and understanding.

"Get some rest, you're going to need it." He pauses, considering the severity of the operation.

"We leave at dawn."

[notthatcrazy]

"Yes sir."

He likely won't be sleeping much... or at sll, but he'll give it a shot.

"Okay if I bunk on the couch tonight?"

Sleeping in an empty bed is just... too much.

[notjustaface]

"Whatever you need to do."

He pauses, carefully considering his next words before quietly adding; "Take your medication. Please?"

[notthatcrazy]

He nods. Normally the reminder would irk him - he knows his own med schedule quite well - but it's meant well, and he has no more fight left in him tonight.

"Thanks, boss."

[notjustaface]

He really is trying to be helpful at least, not patronizing. He's just not really looking forward to seeing him come unhinged if worse comes to it.

By morning, he's silently pacing the hotel room - puffing on a cigar like a freight train strapped with a long range rifle and his sidearm and enough ammunition to take out a small army. He's not taking any chances. "BA, I want you to have the medkit ready to go. If he's still alive, he won't be in good shape." The organization they're up against isn't exactly known for their easy attitude toward intruders.

[notthatcrazy]

He'd appreciate the concern if there weren't more pressing matters occupying his mind. He's close enough to edge as it is, even with his medication.

As predicted, what little sleep he'd managed to get the previous night was hard-won. He's running on fumes as he focuses on Hannibal's instructions, trying to trust his training and abilities to carry him through the mission.

[notjustaface]

Hannibal pulls a black ski mask over his face as he slides into the front passenger seat of the jeep they acquired for the mission - passing one to Murdock too.

"We're going in dark, no flashlights - not even a match. I want to be as close to invisible as we can be. Got that?"

[notthatcrazy]

"Got it."

He's dressed for the occasion, baseball caps and garish hawaiian shirts left behind in favor of basic, concealing black. He pulls on the mask, a determined look on his face.

[notjustaface]

The drive is mostly silent, BA's normal fiddling with the radio while he's in the driver's seat subverted by the grim look on Hannibal's face. From the cave entrance it's another half mile of silence between the pair with clear alarm raised. There's not really any way of knowing if they'll find soldiers around the next bend or not.

Thankfully, if they even know about the security breech they don't seem to think it's worth guarding as nothing bigger than a rat seems interesting in slowing their trip. Just shy of the cave in, Hannibal makes a point of crouching down behind a large boulder, gesturing for Murdock to do the same. It might be the last rest they get today.

"Ready for this?" He whispers, as though either of them could be prepared for the worst.

[notthatcrazy]

He takes a deep breath. "Ready as I can be."

It's not like any of them can be sure of what they're dealing with until they're in the thick of things. He's pretty secure in his promise that he won't lose it on the spot, but beyond that... it's pretty much anyone's guess.