Knock knock

“Rudy. Katherine. Come downstairs, we've found the coordinates of where they're keeping Wu,” ordered Lang from outside the bedroom door.

Kat and Rudy opened the bedroom door and followed Lang downstairs, where Adrian and the rest of the Wolves had assembled.

“So, where’s Wu Suk being held?” Rudy asked.

“He’s at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, building 16,” answered Koeng.

“Hmmm, how did you find Wu Suk’s location so fast?” asked Rudy. "Information brokers circulated news of him only being captured half an hour ago."

“A trusted informant of mine revealed his location to me,” answered Koeng. “They’ve also informed me that the Devil’s Hand isn’t planning to negotiate with the Vitales. They are preparing to send their own forces, El Quetzalcōātl, to take Wu Gaa for themselves. We have to hurry.”

Kat's hands tensed at the mention of El Quetzalcōātl.

“Huh? You know someone this deep in, Koeng Suk? Who are they? Have we worked with them before? How do you know they've sent the Quetz after Wu Suk?” questioned Rudy, her eyes narrowing.

“I can’t tell you who they are, but I can guarantee you that this information is true. Please, Rudy, Wu lóuh báan's life is in danger,” stated Koeng, his voice unwavering.

"Koeng has his... connections, Rudy. He has to keep a tight lip about them, but they've saved our asses several times. You can trust him," spoke Lang.

Rudy squinted at Koeng for a moment longer than usual—long enough to wonder who trusted him that much. Koeng’s lips remained sealed; a stoic look in his eyes was his only answer.

His captain eventually nodded.

“I trust you then, Koeng Suk.”

Rudy proceeded to grab the laptop from the corner of the living room. She began scrolling through various sites, inputting passwords as she went.

“Hmm, building 16 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Built in the early 1800s,” Rudy muttered to herself. “Used to be an old timber shed. Partially demolished in 1963…”

Rudy squinted her eyes as she scanned the pages of documents before stabbing the left click.

“I’ve printed the floor plans.”

Rudy threw a thumb over her shoulder.

“Ming Suk, can you grab them from the printer?”

“Aye doei zoeng.”

Ming laid out the floor plans on the table as Rudy pulled out a pen. She began to mark various parts of it in red ink. Kat silently moved next to Rudy, who was oblivious to the shadow looming next to her. Kat stood still as a statue, stalking Rudy's annotation with only the movement of her eyes.

“Alright, listen up, every- Scheiße, Mann*! Could you not stand so close to me Kat?!"

Kat let out an innocent smirk before taking a half step back. Rudy let out a breath before continuing.

"Okay. According to Koeng Suk’s ‘informant’, the building that Wu Suk is detained in is building 16 of the Brooklyn Navy Yard.”

Rudy began to jab her index finger at the floor plans.

“It’s an abandoned 60-by-300-foot-long, single large bay with timber framing. Watch for extended sight lines. The gabled roof gives us about 25–30‑foot of ceiling with a 6 to 8-foot crawl space. Hostile numbers are unknown. The Vitales know how big a deal this is, so expect us to be outnumbered, given that we only have seven of us and two Takagis.”

Her finger zips to each of the four corners of the floor plan.

“They are most likely keeping Wu Suk in the northwest corner of the building. All the other corners are closer to various entry points. They will most likely have overwatch positions on the catwalks.”

“So, how do we get the Fox out of the den?” asks Kat.

“Hmmm. Koeng Suk, do you have the rappel gear in the van?” asks Rudy.

“Aye, Rudy. Along with the rest of your assault kit and HK416,” answers Koeng.

“Good then,” stated Rudy, straightening up.

She then casts a gaze at the team assembled in front of her.

“We will execute a split-priority entry tactic using a hybrid breach with two entry teams, Alpha and Bravo. Bravo Team will go for a diversionary breach from the southern loading dock. Breaching charges, flashbangs, and cans off. Draw them out, but don’t overcommit. Once Bravo Team has their attention, Alpha Team will execute a silent vertical breach through the northwest skylight—directly above the HVT*. Engage guards with suppressed fire only. No bangs—we maintain stealth to extract the HVT through the northeast exit while Bravo Team draws away foot traffic. We’ll have one person wait with the van for Alpha Team on the northeast exit, and one person on Alpha Team maintains roof overwatch to survey for any incoming Quetz forces. Once we have the HVT in the van, Alpha team will signal Bravo team and overwatch to disengage and rendezvous with the van on rally point Charlie on the east side for exfil. If no signal is received in five minutes, Bravo and overwatch disengage immediately and proceed to rally point Charlie—no exceptions. We’ll bare our fangs from the front while the knife comes in from the back.”

Rudy then turns towards Kat with a toothy grin.

“You ready to work with Wolves instead of the Devil?” asks Rudy.

“Hmm, very impressive tactical knowledge on the structural detail. How did you obtain the floor plans immediately? You got an Underworld hotline for that?” Kat asked.

Rudy puffed her chest.

“You know I am a licensed architect. I have access to NYC DOB records. I can pull strings over and under the table. Every Lau facility in New York City has been designed or modified by me for maximum security. Of course, their floor plans on the registry are all falsified.”

“Hooo,” said Kat, gliding her fingers over the wall next to her. “No wonder the floor plans my informant gave me for this place didn’t match up at all. So there’s more going on in your head than various ways to punch people.”

“Hey, you’d better watch it,” growled Rudy. “Otherwise, the next wall your head will be bashing against is concrete instead of drywall, Kat.”

The two still spat venom at each other, but Adrian relaxed when he noticed their postures this time were lax.

“Ahem,” interrupted Koeng. “Thank you for the plan, Rudy. So who’s on Alpha and Bravo Team?”

Rudy snapped back to her formal composure.

“Kat. Adrian. What do you have with you? I’ll be offended if you came here thinking you can take on us Laus with just a handgun and some knives.”

“I have a DMR* set up in the house across I can grab,” stated Kat. ”Didn’t think it would see any action tonight once I saw that all the windows in this safehouse have mirrored films on them.”

“They also have layered ballistic acrylic, so don’t bother wasting your ammo on our windows,” jeered Rudy. “A DMR, huh—how good a shot are you, Kat?”

“I average half MOA* at a hundred yards, unsupported,” Kat nonchalantly revealed.

“Bullshit,” Rudy spat.

Kat shrugged at Rudy’s disbelief.

“Kat is the best shot in the clan. She even took first place in a PRS* competition once,” Adrian chimed in.

“She’s the real deal,” calmly added Wolf 3.

“Huh? How can you know, Fai-Suk?” Rudy asked.

“I was on the SDU’s sniper team; I know a top sniper when I see one. If you pay close attention, Katherine’s body hardly moves when she breathes. Each breath is deliberate—steady—even. Only years of timing shots between heartbeats can make someone breathe like that unconsciously. You didn't even notice her standing right behind you earlier.”

“Hmmmm," Rudy mulled aloud.

She stared at Wolf 3—Fai, barely seeing the irises of his slit-like eyes. She remembered that those eyes once caught the razor-thin trip wire of an IED* that could've wiped out their entry team.

“Alright, we’ll be making use of your marksmanship then, Kat,” concluded Rudy before she turned to Adrian. “Kid, you still shooting yourself broke with our XM7?”

“Yes, I have it with me too.”

“So the Laus were the ones who ripped you off with that overbuilt money sink?” Interrogated Kat, pinning Adrian with her gaze.

Her younger brother held up his hands like he was at gunpoint.

“Onee-chan, they were the only ones in NYC with the military models and AP rounds,” Adrian explained.

“Unbelievable,” Kat scoffed, palming her face.

Rudy had her hand on her rounded chin, cerebrating over the floor plans as the siblings bickered.

“Alright, listen up," Rudy cut in amongst the Takagis' voices. "Here are the teams. I, my dad, Wolf 3, and Kat will be team Alpha. Kat will maintain overwatch on the roof."

“Huh? Not trusting me enough to let my hands get dirty with the rest of you Wolves?” asked Kat.

“Kat, I’m trusting you to watch the most vulnerable part of the team, our backs. I and the Wolves only brought SBRs* with us. We need someone with the reach, optics, and skills to hold overwatch."

“Hmmm,” Kat’s eyes narrowed as the two stared each other down. “Alright then. I work best with a view anyway, Captain.”

“Bravo Team will be Wolf 1, Wolf 4, Wolf 5, and Adrian. Wolf 2 will be in charge of the van.”

Rudy noticed Adrian raising his hand.

"What is it kid?" She asked.

“We don’t have numbers on their security detail, but I have mini-ground and air drones to covertly assess their numbers and positions,” suggested Adrian.

“Hoh, Mr. Cutting Edge brought his news toys for us to play with, huh?” grinned Rudy. “I’ll appreciate the recon, make it quick though. We’re on the clock.”

“Give me two minutes and I’ll have every Vitale head in that warehouse marked.”

“Good.”

“What’s the plan if the Quetz crashes our little party before we get the Fox out?” asked Kat

“Good question," responded Rudy.

Rudy took a moment to layer another set of annotations onto the floor plans, this time in blue.

"If the Quetz or any Devil’s Hand assets show up mid-op, we initiate Protocol Ragnarok: Alpha Team splits. One extracts with the HVT, two shift to the rear guard. Overwatch provides cover fire just long enough for Alpha team to secure the HVT before falling back with them. Bravo Team collapses flank pressure and suppresses pursuit en route to fallback Route Delta through Tunnel 9 to Chinatown on foot. I’ll shadow the van on my bike—shield and stinger. Anyone chasing us eats lead or takes a wrong turn. Any other questions?”

“No doei zoeng," rang the Wolves.

The Takagis exchanged glances and Japanese phrases with each other before they answered.

"None from us," Kat responded.

Rudy took another look at everyone in front of her—family, friends, and some unexpected allies.

“Remember, we operate as a pack. No lone wolfing. No heroics. No personal vendettas. That means even you, Kat,” Rudy shot a look at Kat.

"Aye aye, Captain," Kat answered with a wry smile.

Rudy proceeded to finish up her briefing.

“The Vitales are a buncha of street-level chumps. Their enforcers have no formal training and lack the funding to access any high-end black market weaponry. The only real skills they have are tossing pizzas. However, I must remind you all that the Devil’s Hand is anything but—the Quetz especially, if they send in Las Navajas. They're an elite strike unit of experienced sicarios with unlimited access to black market weaponry smuggled from the States. Constant skirmishes with black ops Delta Forces have sharpened their fangs over the years. If you engage one, confirm your kills. Some of them have been known to pump themselves full of El Quetz's shit and eat a whole mag of 556 before going down. They are not your average gang bangers. Whoever's pulling the strings behind this dragged us into some real deep shit, but I refuse to exchange lives here. We come out of this mission plus one, and no less. If all goes well, we’ll all be sitting around dim sum on Doyers Street by sunrise.”

Koeng turns to Lang, who was nodding with an impressed look on his face throughout his daughter's briefing.

“It’s your first time operating in New York City with us, Lang. Ready to retake the reins as Alpha?” asked Koeng.

“No, New York is unfamiliar territory for me.” Lang straightened his shoulders and turned towards Rudy, as if he were ready to pass a torch. “Besides, Rudy is the Alpha now.”

Rudy scratched the back of her head sheepishly while Koeng and Lang beamed pridefully at her.

Kat glanced over the site layout, committing key entries and blind spots to memory. Her eyes briefly lingered on Rudy—Alpha now.

“What’s gonna be your radio callsign then if Rudy took yours?” asked Koeng.

“Hmmm, Sigma? Sigma Wolf?” suggested Ming.

“Pfffbt!” spat Rudy and Adrian.

Kat and the rest of the Wolves turned to the pair who were trying to suppress their laughter as well as a can on a .50 cal.

“What’s so funny?” asked Ming. “Should we go with Omega?”

“No,” chuckled Rudy, “that’s not it, just please don’t use sigma.”

“This some kinda Gen Z joke you youngsters are snickering about?” asked Koeng. “What are they laughing about, Katherine?”

Kat shrugged at Koeng’s question.

“Just call me Wolf Zero,” stated Lang.

“Aye, that works,” agreed Koeng.

“Ready up,” Lang barked. “We’re not the only ones on our Fox’s tail.”