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Every door could hold an ambush. Every alleyway was a sniper's nest.
Even the smallest of whispers could trigger a hailstorm of bullets.
We did not know whether our next breath would be our last, even though we were trained to live from second to second.
It was the closest I'd ever come to feeling unsure.
We passed through an entire district of gray flag areas. Shops, business centers, homes, and even schools had hung them up to convey one clear message.
Go back to where you come from, Americans. You are not welcome here.
The undercurrent of hatred was so thick you could reach out and touch it. We knewAl Qaedahad a lot of sympathy among the locals in Kandar. We did not question it.
Our aim was clear, and it manifested the official philosophy of the U.S. Navy SEAL.
We train for war and fight to win.
The intel for the op was sketchy at best. We were going in blind, but this wasn't new for us. We were used to operating in the most hostile environments.
Paladin, one step ahead, turned his head back. "Remember what they told us, boys. The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in combat. And I didn't sweat buckets for nothin'."
I always razzed Paladin for his insistence on showering once every couple of days. "Speakin' of sweat, you look like you been rolling around in the mud all day."
"Man, we literally just crawled through some pretty gnarly terrain. Once this op is done, I'm gonna get myself a spa day."
Falcon laughed. "You'll need a spa year, Paladin. You're gonna stink up the whole room before we even get to Red Circle."
Paladin wrinkled his nose. "Jus' wait till we're done here. I'm gonna book us all some spa dates."
Falcon let out a sound somewhere between a grunt and a snort.
I raised my hand as we entered a deserted street. By our intel, this was the area housing our targets. Our feet thudded on the hard asphalt.
The buildings around us were in ruins, pockmarked with bullet holes and charred from explosions.
It was a ghost town, but it served a purpose.
"Grizzly, do you copy?"
"Copy, Neptune."
"Team two's Alpha is DRT. No pulse."
Something cold trickled down the back of my spine. It was an unseasonable chill on such a pitilessly hot day.
"Copy."
Falcon took one look at my face and stopped. "What is it, Grizzly?"
"Maverick's down. Dead right there."
He touched my shoulder lightly. "Hey. Remember what we're doing here."
I nodded and took another step forward.
Paladin shook his head. "It's a fucking whiteout, people. Can't see shit ahead."
He was right. The dust storm that had been meek thus far was rising torrentially, surrounding and playing a war cry in our eardrums.
