Adler came to a stand behind a rock, not far away from the airplane.

From this position it would be easy game to shoot Arash once he arrived.

You still tried to figure out how to prevent this disaster from happening, after all, the man was someone dear to Perseus' master plane.

Quickly, you threw a glance at the people running around.

Most of them seemed to be merchants, hired to do the dirty work and then leave again once their services weren't needed anymore.

You wouldn't be able to warn any of them. And if you were, they probably would ignore it since they were loyal to the money, not Perseus. Maybe warning Arash would be an option, but he didn't arrive yet.

Mason pulled out a camera to see what was going on ahead.

"Any sign of Arash?", Adler asked.

You sat closer to him, just to see what was going on in his face.

He was calm, as always, but somehow oddly relaxed. Maybe it was because you were back by his side. Already back in the Vietnam war he had gravitated towards you whenever he had needed a calm minute. It seemed like you still had the same effect on him.

Somehow, it made you feel relived that the strong bond between the two of you didn't break over the years.

Mason looked around.

"No sign.", he mumbled.

"Quite a lot of people...", you noted and squinted your eyes. "Seems like a big shipping."

Agreeing, Adler hummed.

"Guns, probably. And some other heavy stuff."

"We leave them?"

"Arash is priority number one."

"Incoming truck.", Woods informed all of a sudden. "Left side."

Your head turned into the direction.

A black truck pulled up, quite quickly for a car that was part of the group.

Someone jumped out, but remained standing in front of the open car window. Whoever that person was, was talking to someone still sitting inside the car.

Squinting your eyes, you took a glance through the telescope of your riffle, trying to see who it was.

But the shadows kept the face hidden.

"Dammit.", you gasped.

"We need to confirm the identity first.", Adler said. "You don't take the shot."

Rolling your eyes, you let out a deep breath.

"I know, shades, but I want to see who it is."

All of a sudden, dense gun shots filled the silence.

Struck by surprise, you and Adler looked back at the car.

"The fuck!", Woods frowned. "He just iced everyone in the truck."

"Seriously?", you took another look through the telescope. "Holy shit... that bastard betrayed his own men..."

Confused by your choice of words, Adler eyed you for a moment. It was obvious that he noticed something was off. He was a little surprised about what you've said, but after knowing you for so long, he didn't question it further.

"The Soviets are barbaric.", he reminded.

Swallowing a comment, you turned your eyes away from him and nodded.

"They are, aren't they?", you mumbled more to yourself than him. "I forgot..."

Mason did a gesture.

"ID confirmed.", he said and handed Adler the camera. "Check for yourself."

"That's our man.", Adler confirmed and gestured for Woods to get into position. "Take him out."

Tense, you glued your eyes to the man who was standing in the open trunk of the plane, commanding for others to be quicker.

He was dressed like a fancy American, an embroidered bomber jacket, with huge glasses, similar to the ones Adler was wearing and a bandanna that kept the massive amounts of pitch black hair out of his face.

He looked a lot different from the man you had met a few years ago. Either he had managed to put on a perfect mask or he was also slowly turning into a puppet of the West.

Woods got ready to take the shot.

Tense, you had your eyes glued to his movements.

The weight of Adler's hand pressed down on your shoulder.

"Don't worry, he won't miss.", he assured you.

With a grim expression you turned your eyes away from him again.

It was ridiculous how he expected you to be worried about the success of Woods shot. It seemed like he didn't even consider you could he worried about the enemy, let alone be one of them.

Woods finger pulled the trigger.

With a dull sound, the bullet left the barrel and chased through the air.

You sucked in a sharp breath.

Arash slowly turned towards the rock behind which you were sitting.

Your eyes locked, or maybe you thought so. With your lips pressed into a thin line, you tilted your head in a way to nod him goodbye.

He picked up the hint. Or maybe he just acted out of coincidence.

With a swift movement, he slid to the side, right behind one of the men that was working on getting the plane stacked.

The bullet pierced his head instead.

All of a sudden, hell was let loose.

People started screaming. The sound of an alarm filled the night.

Out of reflex, you raised your rifle and aimed at Arash yourself.

But not a second later, the first gunshots into your direction tore the silence apart.

"Shit!", Woods cursed and pulled his head in. "We missed him. We can't let him get away!"

With your teeth clenched, you jumped out of the hideout and took cover behind some wooden boxes.

"No shit, Woods!", you hissed. "Adler, I'll push!"

Without waiting for further instructions, you opened fire.

The first bullet you send on its way took down a man. The second shattered someone's knee.

Adler rushed to your side.

"You're quicker these days.", he gasped and pressed his back to a box. "Can you reach him?"

You pulled your head in. The sound of shots filled your ears.

"Not like this.", you squinted your eyes. "The plane's moving!"

Slowly, the aircraft started to move. The trunk was still open.

Arash was standing in the front, holding onto a net while checking what was going on.

Adler gestured for Mason and Woods to push the line as well.

"We have to stop that plane!", he shouted.

You aimed at one of the turbines. It would be better to kill him, now that he knew you were here.

"Don't.", Adler forced you to put the rifle down. "We need him alive. For now."