The Division-Lost Hope

"Open fire!" Nick yelled as the doors blew open and the LMB Infantry swarmed in, consisting of a few Riflemen, three Rushers, and a Heavy. Nick dove into cover and cut down a Rusher that was advancing on Vitaly, who seemed to be holding his own.

"Incoming!" Harper cried as the Heavy set down his shield and opened fire with a M249 machine gun. The agents stopped shooting to dive back into cover as to avoid the flurry of shots.

"Seeker out!" Twilight yelled, sending a Seeker Mine towards the Heavy, who didn't react in time to notice the homing explosive. It detonated, and the heavy was thrown to the floor. Kestrel sent three 12-G Buckshot shells into his face, ending the Heavy. Then, Nick saw a welcoming sight. A squad of Changelings armed with Kalashnikov rifles from the Scrapper's fort arrive via airship and open fire. The LMB turned away from the Agents and started shooting at the airship.

"Agents, move up!" Nick yelled as he fired his CM901 at a Rifleman.

"Copy that!" Anubis said, as his AWP killed a Grenadier. Then, Nick turned and saw a Squad Leader armed with a SMAW Launcher take aim at the airship from the roof. Before he could react, the rocket fired. Twilight threw up a magic shield instantly, shielding the airship from the missile.

"Nice catch!" Logan yelled as his MK14 scored a kill.

"Thanks!" Twilight said as she fired her W1200 at a Rusher. As the airship landed and the Changelings opened cover fire, the agents and Vitaly made a mad dash for the airship. Once the virologist was secure, the airship took off, amid heavy small-arms fire from the remaining LMB.

"Good thing we found you guys in time!" The pilot yelled. "There's been something going on at Stonehaven.'

"What?" Logan asked.

"A squad of Griffons was sent out to secure a village. They didn't come back. We found their bodies later. Turns out they were attacked."

"By who?" Nick asked.

"We don't know." The pilot replied. "Here we are."

As the agents disembarked from the airship, they escorted Vitaly to the Field Hospital, and then headed to the Command Tent.

"What's the situation?" Nick asked Celestia.

"We found this on one of the bodies." Celestia said, handing Nick something he did not expect. It was an SHD Watch, only the screen was cracked. Nick interfaced with the Tech, and frowned.

"Agent Michael Gates. Second Wave, KIA, Not a Rogue." Nick said. "What's his watch doing here?"

"We don't know." Celestia said. "Will you head out to the village and investigate?"

"Sure." Nick said. As they headed to the Skimmer bay, Nick glanced at the Watch.

"What's going on here?" he thought. "It can't be...them…"

===================

As the Agent's skimmer arrived at the village, Nick found a blood trail leading to the village center, where, to the agent's surprise, an Active ECHO beacon was present. Nick activated the ECHO, and watched.

"So, what'd we got here?" Said a griffon.

"I don't know why Razor sent us here." said another. "But there's no supplies here."

"Wait, stay where you are!" a third cried, and then, the sounds of simulated gunfire erupted. Then, as one Griffon attempted to crawl away from his dead squadmates, a figure Nick never hoped to see again approached. It was clad in heavy black armor, and a black and yellow striped Hockey Mask disguised the human's face. A Military MK46 and a LVOA-C assault rifle were strapped to his back, along with a wicked Tomahawk. The most disturbing thing was the multiple SHD watches, strapped to a bandolier. Nick stood in horror as the Hunter executed the griffon with a Tomahawk to the head. Then, there was a final gunshot, and the Hunter collapsed. The ECHO ended, and Nick growled.

"Nick, what was that?" Twilight asked.

"There's something you should know, Twi." Nick said. "Around a month after you left, we located several experimental antivirals in the Dark Zone. We were sent into the Dark Zone, in the middle of a superstorm level blizzard, to retrieve them. Our helicopter crashed, and we survived for three hours, with no SHD tech or weapons, and we managed to retrieve the antivirals. Thing is, we weren't alone in the Dark Zone. Unknown hostiles ambushed us at the extraction. They had SHD weaponry and tech, heavy armor, and they wore masks. And on their bandoliers were SHD watches they had taken from dead agents. We called them "Hunters". We killed four of them as we extracted with the antivirals. We haven't been able to locate them since. The human who just killed those Griffons was a Hunter. That explains why we found a SHD watch on the bodies."

"Who are they?" Twilight asked.

"We don't know." Nick said. "We have no evidence as to who they are. Only, that they target SHD agents and kill them, without mercy…"

"Contact!" Anubis said as the squad saw a human approach, clutching his shoulder. As he approached, the agents saw the human was a Hunter. Nick slowly approached, keeping his finger on the trigger.

"Who are you?" Nick asked. The Hunter didn't respond. He then fell to his knees and collapsed. Nick grabbed him and dragged him over to the Skimmer as the Agents boarded. Nick removed his mask, revealing a man of about thirty, with a rough shaven beard and reddish brown hair. Nick took the Hunter's P416 and R700 and set them in the storage compartment of the Skimmer. As they headed back to Griffonstone, Nick watched the Hunter be treated by Logan and Twilight. He sighed and looked back towards the darkening sky.

=================

Nick walked into the room where the Hunter was being kept. His armor had been removed, and his SHD watches confiscated, along with his Tomahawk. Nick sat down on a chair next to him, and a few minutes later, he heard a groan. The Hunter sat up and looked right at Nick.

"Where am I?" the Hunter asked.

"Not important." Nick replied

"You're one of those SHD agents, aren't you?" he asked.

"Yes." Nick said. "You're one of the Hunters."

"That's what you call us, eh?" was the reply.

"Who are you?" Nick asked.

"Name's Traver. Riley Traver." Riley said.

"Alright Riley, how do you know about the SHD?" Nick asked. Riley sighed and looked away.

"During the Dark Zone pull-out, some guy gave me a phone call. He called himself "Vanguard." He claimed he knew about some secret sleeper organization, how they left us behind, all that jazz. Said that during a snowstorm, four of them would come into the Dark Zone and try to retrieve some antivirals. I was told to kill them. But, something about the whole thing just seemed...off. I didn't..couldn't...do it. Four others tried, I know that. I headed towards the DZ checkpoint at West 31st to turn myself in when I black out. Next thing I know, I'm here. I saw those bird things, and I panicked. Then, I get shot, and you guys find me." Riley said.

NIck sighed.

"You should know who Vanguard is. His name is Aaron Keener. He's a rogue member of the same organization he told you about. Everything you know about the SHD is a lie."

"Then what's the truth?" Riley spat. Nick told Riley about the First and Second Waves of SHD agents, and how they were trying to take back New York, not destroy it.

"Damn." Riley said. "I thought…"

"It's true." Nick said. "It's our job to protect what remains."

Riley sighed and looked away.

"How many more Hunters are there?" Nick asked.

"There was seven of us." Riley replied. "Four are dead. The other two, just...vanished. I'm the last one."

"What's your combat experience?" Nick asked.

"Delta Force, three years." Riley replied.

"Riley…" Nick said. "I'd like to recruit you."

"For what?" Riley replied.

"For my squad." Nick said. "I'd like to make you an acting SHD agent. We could use you and your experience."

Riley hesitated, then he smiled.

"If it means giving that sonofabitch Keener what he deserves, then I'm in."

"Welcome, then." Nick said, helping him up. "Let's get you situated and armed."

Riley and Nick walked into the sunlight, as Riley smiled.

"Watch out, Keener." he thought. "I'm coming for you."