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Description
The glass shattered against her foot as Gil kicked in the window and jumped through. Shards cut her arms and shoulders, but she hardly noticed the pain or the blood as she took up her position. Inside she saw a few individuals wandering around. A few were armed…and in the middle of the warehouse was a single chair. A young man sat in it with a bag over his head. His hands were tied behind his back, but Gil was relieved to see his chest heave in and out…he was alive. Maybe a little worse for ware…but he was most certainly alive!
“Thank God…” Gil whispered. A part of her wanted to rush in and go grab Rodney before Cliff or Xiao-Li were ready. She stopped herself though, knowing full well that she couldn’t dodge bullets. She needed to move with them or she’d just put Rodney in danger. She looked to the entry zone from the roof and saw Xiao-Li slide into the room, quiet and as stealthy as a shadow. She then turned to the front door where Cliff would enter. The idea was a good one. Cliff would get their attention and engage directly. Xiao-Li would take out any snipers or look outs in the upper levels, and while the fight was going on, Gil would run in and free Rodney, then back Cliff up. She waited. Each second felt like an hour…each breath was a lifetime.

*knock knock*

The guards tensed and two raised their guns as they walked to the front door.
“Vicky…what’s going on out there? Who’s at the door?” One whispered into a radio on his belt. “Vicky, respond!” Gil grinned, knowing he was trying to contact one of the outside lookouts…he had no idea their fate was already sealed. “Damn it…lazy bitch.” He walked to the door and groaned. “GET OUT OF HERE!” There was no answer from Cliff….just another knocking.
“Fuck off.” He shouted back, turning to leave.

*knock knock*

“I TOLD YOU TO FUCK OFF!” The man bellowed, walking to the door and throwing it open.
*BANG*
The guard fell to the ground, a bullet hole the size of a golfball going out the back of his head as Cliff walked in, gun in hand. The other guards jumped up in horror.
“You didn’t say ‘Who’s there?’ Ruins the joke, otherwise.” Cliff sighed.
“KILL HIM!” The guards began firing furiously. Cliff dove out of the way and ran for the outside where he had room to fight. He was chased, but that had already been her que to move. Gil ran into the room, gun out, and she began popping off shots on any stragglers chasing Cliff. Upstairs, Xiao-Li was making short work of the overhead guardsmen, slicing them to ribbons with her blades. All was going just the way she wanted…….but something still wasn’t right. She felt an uncomfortable sensation in her stomach as she got closer to Rodney.
“YOU BITCH!” Gil ducked just as a taller enforcer ran towards her and took a wild swing at her head. Gil threw herself away from him and fired the gun in her hand. She missed only by centimeters, and the enforcer grabbed hold of the gun to pull it out of her hand. Gil yanked and kicked at his hip, buckling him and forcing his grip loose. She yanked once more, freeing the gun and unloading the clip into his chest. The enforcer fell and Gil threw the gun down to focus on Rodney.
“I’m here, Rodney! I’m getting you out!” She threw off the sack hood and stared into the face…of a complete stranger.
The man under the hood was far older than Rodney with greying hair and a beard. There was a bullethole in the middle of his head and his eyes were open and pale. He looked like he’d been dead for a day or two…and smelled like it too. Gil stepped back, realizing quickly what had happened.

“IT WAS A DECOY! THEY LEFT A DECOY!” Gil screamed. Xiao-Li, who was within earshot cursed under her breath and ran towards the ladder to get to her.
“They must’ve thought you might try a rescue!” Xiao-Li cried.
“And if this gets back to their boss, Rodney’ll be hurt!”
“I won’t let that happen. Neither will Cliff.”
“Then what do we do!?” Gil demanded.
“Go help Cliff. I’ll finish up in here! Go!” Gil nodded and ran out of the large doors to go see Cliff’s situation.
Cliff was holding his own. He’d taken cover behind a laid out set of concrete slabs, peeking up every now and then to exchange fire. Gil snuck up behind an unsuspecting gunman and snapped his neck with a twist of his head. Cliff, seeing the change in rates of fire, jumped out and began laying out heavy fire on the attackers. When his rounds were out, he threw his gun at the nearest one and, while disoriented, Cliff pounced on him and cracked his jaw with an elbow to the chin. Gil ran and grabbed Cliff’s arm to get him back to cover. Cliff shouted in pain as a bullet grazed his bicep, but he was unharmed, despite a bit of blood on his sleeve.
“You good?” Gil cried.
“A scratch. I’ll be okay! Where’s Rodney?”
“He’s not here.” Gil hissed. “It was a decoy in case I tried something! They tricked us!”
“Shit, I was worried that might be the case. We need one of these assholes to tell us where they’re hiding out.” Cliff growled. He grabbed his combat sword and rolled back into position. “Where’s Xiao-Li?”
“She’s cleaning up inside the warehouse. She told me to come find you.”
“We better back her up if we can.” Cliff grumbled. “I don’t like her being in there alone.” Just as he said this, the sound of an engine roaring to life could be heard from near the back end of the warehouse. “The hell!?”
“Sounds like a truck!” Gil shouted.
“I’ll cover you! Go!” Cliff shouted. Gil broke cover and ran out as bullets pelted towards her. Cliff used the instant to run out and slug one of the three thugs and turned, kicking the other one over. Gil sprinted for the warehouse, only to see a horrifying sight.
“XIAO-LI!” Xiao-Li had her hands taped to her side and she was kicking and thrashing as two goons loaded her into the back of the truck. Gil ran for the truck and took a running jump, just as the truck began to pull away. She missed by inches and hit the ground, “SHIT! XIAO-LI! GET BACK HERE!” She was unsuccessful at stopping the truck with words alone, and she watched in a mixture of frustration and fear as the truck stormed off into the night. “Damn it DAMN IT!” She screamed, throwing her blade to the ground. “This isn’t happening…” As she lamented, behind her Cliff came sprinting in, clutching his wounded arm. He looked around and saw Gil’s face, allowing the situation to sink in without explanation.
“They got her…they got Xiao-Li!?” Cliff shouted.
“Cliff, I’m sorry! I tried to stop them.” Cliff cursed and fell to his knees, trembling with fury.
“We’ll find her!” Gil encouraged. “I know we’ll find her and Rodney.”
“You’re damned right we will!” Cliff hissed back. “But Xiao-Li wasn’t a push over. How’d they catch her?”
“They had her wrists taped.” Gil explained. “She couldn’t resist.”
“But that’s just the thing: how did they even get her subdued to the point that they could restrain her?” Cliff asked. Gil opened her mouth but paused when she realized it didn’t make sense.
“Yeah…that’s odd.” Cliff stood up and reached into his pocket to find his phone.
“There’s….what if she…” He began muttering to himself as he clicked away at his phone. Gil watched him curiously until he finally gave a frustrated snort.
“What?”
“I get it now….damn it, she’s so reckless! C’mon, we need to get rid of the bodies and clean the place up.” Cliff instructed.
“I doubt the police will care much about these guys…they’re known gangsters and pretty big trouble. I mean, you noticed that despite all the gunfire, no one has shown up?”
“Still, I’d rather not want to make a scene.” Cliff answered. “Then we’re leaving.”
“Where?”
“Xiao-Li let herself get caught!” Cliff explained. “When I was staying with Xiao-Li in China, there were times we might get separated in the more populated and crowded cities. We installed an app that locates the others phones so we can find each other. She probably has her phone on and I can track her.”
“Smart!”
“Not really. If they search her and find the phone, they’ll ditch it.” Cliff grumbled.
“Then there’s no time to lose! Let’s go!”
“C’mon…we’ll find those bastards.”
“Sorry I drew you into this.” Gil sighed, as they ran to clean up the area and grab some weapons for the trip.
“Don’t be. The only thing I’m worried about right now is Xiao-Li and Rodney. I doubt they’ll be merciful.”
“Then let’s hurry….they just pissed off the wrong people.”

Description
The glass shattered against her foot as Gil kicked in the window and jumped through. Shards cut her arms and shoulders, but she hardly noticed the pain or the blood as she took up her position. Inside she saw a few individuals wandering around. A few were armed…and in the middle of the warehouse was a single chair. A young man sat in it with a bag over his head. His hands were tied behind his back, but Gil was relieved to see his chest heave in and out…he was alive. Maybe a little worse for ware…but he was most certainly alive!
“Thank God…” Gil whispered. A part of her wanted to rush in and go grab Rodney before Cliff or Xiao-Li were ready. She stopped herself though, knowing full well that she couldn’t dodge bullets. She needed to move with them or she’d just put Rodney in danger. She looked to the entry zone from the roof and saw Xiao-Li slide into the room, quiet and as stealthy as a shadow. She then turned to the front door where Cliff would enter. The idea was a good one. Cliff would get their attention and engage directly. Xiao-Li would take out any snipers or look outs in the upper levels, and while the fight was going on, Gil would run in and free Rodney, then back Cliff up. She waited. Each second felt like an hour…each breath was a lifetime.

*knock knock*

The guards tensed and two raised their guns as they walked to the front door.
“Vicky…what’s going on out there? Who’s at the door?” One whispered into a radio on his belt. “Vicky, respond!” Gil grinned, knowing he was trying to contact one of the outside lookouts…he had no idea their fate was already sealed. “Damn it…lazy bitch.” He walked to the door and groaned. “GET OUT OF HERE!” There was no answer from Cliff….just another knocking.
“Fuck off.” He shouted back, turning to leave.

*knock knock*

“I TOLD YOU TO FUCK OFF!” The man bellowed, walking to the door and throwing it open.
*BANG*
The guard fell to the ground, a bullet hole the size of a golfball going out the back of his head as Cliff walked in, gun in hand. The other guards jumped up in horror.
“You didn’t say ‘Who’s there?’ Ruins the joke, otherwise.” Cliff sighed.
“KILL HIM!” The guards began firing furiously. Cliff dove out of the way and ran for the outside where he had room to fight. He was chased, but that had already been her que to move. Gil ran into the room, gun out, and she began popping off shots on any stragglers chasing Cliff. Upstairs, Xiao-Li was making short work of the overhead guardsmen, slicing them to ribbons with her blades. All was going just the way she wanted…….but something still wasn’t right. She felt an uncomfortable sensation in her stomach as she got closer to Rodney.
“YOU BITCH!” Gil ducked just as a taller enforcer ran towards her and took a wild swing at her head. Gil threw herself away from him and fired the gun in her hand. She missed only by centimeters, and the enforcer grabbed hold of the gun to pull it out of her hand. Gil yanked and kicked at his hip, buckling him and forcing his grip loose. She yanked once more, freeing the gun and unloading the clip into his chest. The enforcer fell and Gil threw the gun down to focus on Rodney.
“I’m here, Rodney! I’m getting you out!” She threw off the sack hood and stared into the face…of a complete stranger.
The man under the hood was far older than Rodney with greying hair and a beard. There was a bullethole in the middle of his head and his eyes were open and pale. He looked like he’d been dead for a day or two…and smelled like it too. Gil stepped back, realizing quickly what had happened.

“IT WAS A DECOY! THEY LEFT A DECOY!” Gil screamed. Xiao-Li, who was within earshot cursed under her breath and ran towards the ladder to get to her.
“They must’ve thought you might try a rescue!” Xiao-Li cried.
“And if this gets back to their boss, Rodney’ll be hurt!”
“I won’t let that happen. Neither will Cliff.”
“Then what do we do!?” Gil demanded.
“Go help Cliff. I’ll finish up in here! Go!” Gil nodded and ran out of the large doors to go see Cliff’s situation.
Cliff was holding his own. He’d taken cover behind a laid out set of concrete slabs, peeking up every now and then to exchange fire. Gil snuck up behind an unsuspecting gunman and snapped his neck with a twist of his head. Cliff, seeing the change in rates of fire, jumped out and began laying out heavy fire on the attackers. When his rounds were out, he threw his gun at the nearest one and, while disoriented, Cliff pounced on him and cracked his jaw with an elbow to the chin. Gil ran and grabbed Cliff’s arm to get him back to cover. Cliff shouted in pain as a bullet grazed his bicep, but he was unharmed, despite a bit of blood on his sleeve.
“You good?” Gil cried.
“A scratch. I’ll be okay! Where’s Rodney?”
“He’s not here.” Gil hissed. “It was a decoy in case I tried something! They tricked us!”
“Shit, I was worried that might be the case. We need one of these assholes to tell us where they’re hiding out.” Cliff growled. He grabbed his combat sword and rolled back into position. “Where’s Xiao-Li?”
“She’s cleaning up inside the warehouse. She told me to come find you.”
“We better back her up if we can.” Cliff grumbled. “I don’t like her being in there alone.” Just as he said this, the sound of an engine roaring to life could be heard from near the back end of the warehouse. “The hell!?”
“Sounds like a truck!” Gil shouted.
“I’ll cover you! Go!” Cliff shouted. Gil broke cover and ran out as bullets pelted towards her. Cliff used the instant to run out and slug one of the three thugs and turned, kicking the other one over. Gil sprinted for the warehouse, only to see a horrifying sight.
“XIAO-LI!” Xiao-Li had her hands taped to her side and she was kicking and thrashing as two goons loaded her into the back of the truck. Gil ran for the truck and took a running jump, just as the truck began to pull away. She missed by inches and hit the ground, “SHIT! XIAO-LI! GET BACK HERE!” She was unsuccessful at stopping the truck with words alone, and she watched in a mixture of frustration and fear as the truck stormed off into the night. “Damn it DAMN IT!” She screamed, throwing her blade to the ground. “This isn’t happening…” As she lamented, behind her Cliff came sprinting in, clutching his wounded arm. He looked around and saw Gil’s face, allowing the situation to sink in without explanation.
“They got her…they got Xiao-Li!?” Cliff shouted.
“Cliff, I’m sorry! I tried to stop them.” Cliff cursed and fell to his knees, trembling with fury.
“We’ll find her!” Gil encouraged. “I know we’ll find her and Rodney.”
“You’re damned right we will!” Cliff hissed back. “But Xiao-Li wasn’t a push over. How’d they catch her?”
“They had her wrists taped.” Gil explained. “She couldn’t resist.”
“But that’s just the thing: how did they even get her subdued to the point that they could restrain her?” Cliff asked. Gil opened her mouth but paused when she realized it didn’t make sense.
“Yeah…that’s odd.” Cliff stood up and reached into his pocket to find his phone.
“There’s….what if she…” He began muttering to himself as he clicked away at his phone. Gil watched him curiously until he finally gave a frustrated snort.
“What?”
“I get it now….damn it, she’s so reckless! C’mon, we need to get rid of the bodies and clean the place up.” Cliff instructed.
“I doubt the police will care much about these guys…they’re known gangsters and pretty big trouble. I mean, you noticed that despite all the gunfire, no one has shown up?”
“Still, I’d rather not want to make a scene.” Cliff answered. “Then we’re leaving.”
“Where?”
“Xiao-Li let herself get caught!” Cliff explained. “When I was staying with Xiao-Li in China, there were times we might get separated in the more populated and crowded cities. We installed an app that locates the others phones so we can find each other. She probably has her phone on and I can track her.”
“Smart!”
“Not really. If they search her and find the phone, they’ll ditch it.” Cliff grumbled.
“Then there’s no time to lose! Let’s go!”
“C’mon…we’ll find those bastards.”
“Sorry I drew you into this.” Gil sighed, as they ran to clean up the area and grab some weapons for the trip.
“Don’t be. The only thing I’m worried about right now is Xiao-Li and Rodney. I doubt they’ll be merciful.”
“Then let’s hurry….they just pissed off the wrong people.”