Upon those words, the tactical unit took to fanning out. 

On the other hand, Elias held his breath as he had immediately gone into hiding. His best option was to wait it out simply as they searched high and low for this mouse.

While waiting was the last thing he wanted to do, patience and sitting still made the most sense. He had overheard one of the individuals mention that they wanted to be over with this rather quickly. 

Seeing he had time, he shuffled to the dark corner recess to wait it out. 

"Yo, check there. You three on me. We're heading over in this direction."

While clutching his knees, Elias noticed a heel that followed first before the shiny barrel of a rifle came next. They rounded the corner, and their pricey-looking goggles pierced into the darkens of the direction Elias was last standing. They found the bottle but quickly dismissed it as they continued their search.

"Someone, go check on 4," a voice said over the gunman's radio.

It seemed the heavens were shining down on Elias once again. 

He took the opportunity to make a break for the promised land, the security booth. As he rounded the next shipping container, he saw a warehouse where he could take cover. It sat just before his final destination. 

As he maneuvered through the maze of crates in the dimly lit warehouse, his heart raced with the urgency of escape. But just as he reached for the exit door, a chilling click shattered the silence. 

Slowly, he turned to find himself face-to-face with a menacing gunman, his eyes widening in disbelief. In a heartbeat, a second assailant appeared, sealing off any chance of fleeing.

Now being held at gunpoint, they directed him towards the open space within the warehouse where they could get a better view. It wasn't long before their buddies joined them. 

"Ahh, so you're the lil mouse," remarked one of the armed individuals stepping forward. 

Mouse eh? I really thought of myself more of a majestic crane—No. That's not the point. Is it me, or is it getting hot in here? I hope those things aren't real. Please be a prank. I hate being the one pranked—but please, for the love of all things, be a prank.

"Show your arms slowly."

One took to calling the shots as they kept their rifle trained on him. They ensured their crosshairs didn't falter from Elias's brow as they cautiously patted him down. 

Examining the badge with a wary brow, the individual took a moment to reevaluate his uniform.

"You're just security?" He asked. His tone contained a bit of skepticism in it. The others started to whisper among themselves.

"Security?"

"There wasn't supposed to be any security tonight."

"Talk to the boss."

"Might have missed 'em on the list."

"You sure, recheck 'em."

"There is no doubt about that. It is a security uniform."

"Shame," muttered the one who held their rifle up. "You weren't supposed to be here, mate, unless you're one of them."

His finger moved to the trigger, and he was ready to eliminate the young man before him when something suddenly fell from the sky.

*CLINK*

A small silver pill-shaped object about the size of a thumb suddenly rolled to their heels. It bloomed with great force from its sides, spewing white smoke that filled the area immediately. 

Suddenly, a soft and elegant voice whispered into Elias's ears. "I'll handle the rest."

 A silhouette of a figure moved in the blink of an eye, passing by his shoulders and into the smoke.

"Huh?!"

***

Within the confines of the dense fog, the gunmen couldn't make heads or tails of what was happening, worse, where each other was. The smoke had quickly blurred their vision from seeing one another. It had only taken a few moments before the full effects could be realized. 

The smoke was so thick that it prevented them not only from seeing each other but also made it nearly impossible to see the tips of the barrels of their guns that they had readied. If they were to stick their arms out, their vision would fade to the edge of their elbows.

The self-appointed leader took to jostling their radio quickly as they sensed something was wrong. 

"Keep your eyes peeled and your guns ready!"

""" Roger.”””

The smoke was too thick. Once they had lost sight of one another, they could only rely on their radios. Even the young man being searched by his comrade had disappeared from their fingertips when the smoke rose.

Considering his training, he called for the group to count off. He didn't wish for friendly fire.

"Hmm…?" He paused for a moment after hearing each and every response. 

We're down one, he assessed. He leaned his foot forward, sweeping through the creamy soup of the smoke as he continuously shifted around. 

As the self-appointed leader, he had to make the right calls, but he couldn't help but pause again when he heard a shuffle not too far from his position. 

"Oi, who's that?"

Suddenly, a rain of gunfire shot off.

"Who just shot? Report!"

The smoke was as thick as the depths of the sea, seeming endless. They had already spent too much time searching for the witness and needed to avoid law enforcement getting involved. Time was running out, so they needed to change their priorities. Their best bet now was to find a way out before more unexpected obstacles emerged.

He moved slowly, trying to find a wall or some surface against which to place his back. Anything was better than to swim in this void of smoke aimlessly. 

One step after another, slowly inching, he kept his gun readied. His head on a swivel. 

Slowly but surely. Was that not how the turtle won the race? 

Heeding the life lesson, he abruptly halted as something caught his foot. Upon further inspection, he discovered an elusive object near his toes. Despite crouching down for a closer look, it remained elusive. After a few moments of searching, he realized it was an unconscious comrade, their rifle missing.

The hunters had become the hunted.

Radioing again, only one member responded.

Another shower of gunfire could be heard echoing throughout the shipping containers from just past his shoulder. He moved towards the sound, the toe of his boot coming into contact once again with something he could not see. A looming sense of déjà vu was beginning to settle on his shoulders.

Fortunately, the smoke was beginning to thin out. While it was still hard to make out anything, one could at least see the ends of their fingertips. This was progress. Even if the tips of their hands were a hazy shape, it meant that if they waited long enough, it would eventually dissipate completely. But just how long would that take? Five more minutes, ten? That was far too long. They didn't have that sort of time as they were currently being picked off. 

There was nothing but the sense of eeriness as he tried to keep his wits about him. Suddenly, the hairs on his neck raised, beckoning him to glance around haphazardly. Fear was beginning to play a factor. One that made him feel like he was starting to see hallucinations.

Out of the corner of his eye, he swore he saw a murky figure looming just past his shoulder. As he studied it for a moment, the realization settled that it was far too slender of a build to be one of his own. With his finger on the trigger, he fired a few shots, only for it to quickly disappear.

Just as it merged back in, out of nowhere, an arm shot out from his blind spot. Being quick enough to dodge in the nick of time, he immediately pulled the trigger again to awaken the slumbering bullets in his magazine. 

The arm vanished as quickly as it had appeared in the shroud of fog, turning the situation into a game of cat and mouse.

He noticed he was alone in the silence for a moment. It dawned on him that their attacker evaluated their skills, targeting the weakest first and then going after the most challenging ones.

As the smoke cleared, the shadow reappeared. He managed to fire off a few shots before his comrade swiftly pushed the barrel of the rifle down.

"Oi! Watch where you're firing!"

"What?" squawked the self-appointed leader. It was surprising to see another capable one, such as himself, still remaining. With another reliable set of hands and eyes, he knew they could make it out of here. "I thought everyone else was done for. It looks like we are being toyed with."

"Oh, so you noticed," mumbled the other, slightly vexed. Now was not the time to clarify who was considered the big dog of this operation. When they made it out, he would be sure to give him a proper lesson in the order of command. For now, they had to keep focused.

"You look over there. I will cover us over here..." 

The self-appointed leader had only one plan: to keep their backs to one another to ensure they had covered all angles.

"...Also," he glanced back to finish, and he noticed that his comrade was gone just as quickly as they had come. 

The smoke had thinned, yet his comrade was still swept away before his eyes.

"Damn it!" 

Spinning on his heel, he felt like he was in a horror movie, where the monster had taken everyone from him, and where he was now the lone survivor. He had to play it smart for those who always lived at the end of the movies, driving away to the morning sun.

The shadowy figure slipped out of sight, sending a shiver down his spine. Suddenly, he felt a tightness around his neck, a hair-thin thread holding him in place. Reacting quickly, he elbowed backward, encountering something soft yet yielding, breaking free from the invisible grasp. In a swift motion, he aimed his rifle, only to have it kicked away.

The force was surprising as he, too, stumbled backward. He tried to catch his footing but found himself taking a knee instead. Suddenly, an arm shot outwards to his chest. With great force, it pushed the air out of his lungs. 

Following quickly, a leg swung, catching the perfect angle to dislocate his protruding knee outward. It left him lying on his back in pain, only to catch another glimpse of the shadowy figure standing over him. 

There was nothing more he could do, leaving him to gulp. There was a heaviness in his throat before everything went black.

Finally, the smoke cleared, and the heavily armed and trained individuals lay disarmed and unconscious on the warehouse floor. Meanwhile, Elias stood bewildered, his arms raised, unsure of what had transpired.