[url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/257213019/0/0]Link to Chapter 2, Part 1[/url] [spoiler]All chapters of the War of Lies will be linked to the [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/257167399/0/0]Table of Contents[/url] as they are posted every Monday[/spoiler] “Take me off my ship and you’re the next person I do that to,” she threatened, pointing at the dead woman. “Noted,” I chuckled, then caught my helmet when one of my men tossed it. Pushing my way out of the tent, I took in the dead Mob men and my men tending two of our own dead, then slipped my helmet on. “Target eliminated. Report.” “Escort eliminated,” one of the men next to me stated smugly. “We lost Roy and Ishmael,” another listed, “Gassei is lightly wounded.” “Enemy reserves eliminated,” someone else listed, voice faint and buzzy in the channel from the distance and interference from the foliage. “Enemy vessel cleared and detained,” someone else notified over the channel, “Advanced team searching for other hostiles and clearing area.” “Everyone pack it up. Advanced team, check in,” I ordered. “Advanced 1, check,” there was a bit of feedback, but it was fine. A short pause followed. “Advanced 3, check,” someone else spoke up, “Permission to seek Advanced 2.” “Granted,” I confirmed, “Check in.” “Advanced 4, check.” “Advanced 5, check.” Another silence. I started counting the missing sound offs in my head. “Advanced 9, check.” “Everyone abandon tasks and fall back for evac immediately,” I began walking back towards our ship and took my rifle from an awaiting soldier, “Advanced 3, check in.” As I waited for a response, the several men around me fell into a defensive box and began escorting us. “Advanced 3, check in,” I commanded, but was met with silence, “Advanced 1… blast it. Double time everyone, we already got what we came for. Those of you on the enemy vessel, commandeer and meet us at-“ An explosion cut me off, its fires rising up from where I suspected Seren’s ship had been. “Sonuva… captain, stay with us,” one of my men told me, then began running. The others and I kept up with him. I wasn’t about to complain about him giving me an order in this situation. “Enemy vessel destroyed! Half of the acquisition team gone with it! Enemy contact!” “Advanced 5 contact!” “Advanced 12 con-!” “Captain, the ship is prepped and awaiting-“ gunfire crackled over the channel, followed by shouts, “Sir, they’re trying to board. If they take the bridge, the AI will blow the ship.” “Acknowledged,” I replied grudgingly, knowing we couldn’t let the enemy get our resources. “What’s goin’ on, captain?” Estefa questioned, out of the loop without her headset, “If anything happens to my ship, I’ll-!” Another explosion shook the air and tossed smoke up above the tree line, this time clearly coming from our landing site. Estefa choked up and lost all her speed in shock, slowing to a stop with wide eyes. “Estefa!” one of the men shouted, turning and going back to her. He grabbed her arm, but before he could get her moving a bullet tore through her stomach, and then another through the man’s neck. The two crumpled to the ground and a few of my other men opened fire into the trees. There was shooting all around us now, and more of my soldiers began to burst out of the trees, firing back the way they had come with enemy bullets on their heels. The radio was a mess of shouts and reports. “Regroup!” someone next to me hollered, “Get into the trees! We’re sitting ducks out here without a ship!” Our box began to shift over to the forest, more of our number joining from several directions, but then the enemy arrived. Dozens of men clad in armor of varying quality and covering charged out from all directions, many screaming war cries and insults. My forces opened fire all around, dropping thug after thug, but under such odds and in such a place they were falling, too. I stood boldly amongst my soldiers, firing into the onslaught with them. I had stood by them every battle before and I would stand by them now. The Syndicate was a family, as I was sure the Mob could never understand. Several people shouted behind me, and I spun around as some Mob men came close enough to hit at and get point-blank shots on my men. Roaring angrily, I shot all of them dead and stepped up into our line. The entire fight quickly became a melee as they closed in around our now very few members. That meant they were going for captives. Likely me. My men clearly outclassed most of them, beating down multiple foes at once. But there wasn’t much that could be done against such odds. Where did all these men come from? How did they fool the sensors? A stray bullet grazed my thigh, making me flinch and miss a shot. I was tackled by my target, then by another thug, and our line broke. After the ensuing scuffle, I found myself held on my knees between two burly men with the taste of blood and dirt tainting my mouth, the last few of my soldiers pinned or grabbed as I was. Almost every single one of my men kept struggling and had to be pinned to the ground. A couple more shots rang out as some of them proved too much of a problem to hold. “Bravo!” a hearty voice cheered over the din, causing the Mob lackeys go quiet, “Bravo! We have their captain, right? Let me meet the man!” The crowd parted to reveal an Awoken man in clunky armor with a scarred face and bushy beard. He spotted me and strutted forward confidently, as if he was an architect admiring his own finished design. “Gotta hand it to you, mate,” the man smiled with big, uneven teeth, “You ran a pretty operation back there.” His grin suddenly became a frown as he looked around him, probably counting losses, “Mine didn’t go so pretty.” “Your leader is dead,” I stated coldly, “No one’s left to pay you.” “Now hold on, hold on,” he put his hands up in a halting gesture, “Let me finish, mate. We expected some fancy maneuvers and a quick little plan to knock us all off, see? We put up a little act with a fake little missy just like you did, then we put all my boys way out and started comin’ in as soon as things got cooking.” I cursed under my breath, and the man smirked. “We may not all be little preppy boys raised up in a fancy shooting school, but some of us know what we’re doing, mate,” he explained, “Those boys you’ve been shooting up til now were the little workers. My boys are the fighters.” His friendly manner was beginning to irk me. “If you’re not going to shoot me,” I seethed, “Give me something to blow your brains out with.” “You’re a lot more gutsy than I expected for a spit and polish preppy,” the man laughed, then waved a hand at his troops, “Show these mates some hospitality, boys!” Several gunshots cracked in the air, and I scowled at the man in front of me as I heard my soldiers’ bodies halt their writhing or hit the ground. “My friend here seems upset,” my captor leaned in towards me, “Nothing personal, mate. We’re just a couple of business men, you and me. You would’ve done the same.” I was opening my mouth to retort when a shout rose up behind the man. “This‘ns alive, boss!” [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/257213041/0/0]Link to Chapter 2, Part 3[/url]