It was a trashy morning. Her ex has somehow found her fifteenth phone number and have been calling non-stop. She woke up late after finishing work last night and rushed to the bathroom to get ready – only to find that there wasn't water.

Then she got into a 15-minute phone call, first to her landlord, then to the local technicians, then back to her landlord, occasionally misclicking her ex's calls and shouting for one minute straight.

The water will not be on until 3 pm.

She drove to the local gym and took a shower, and on the way back, her tires pop. Who the hell placed nails on this street??

That's it!

She phoned her car garage and jumped outside, running to the base.

"Lieutenant Luann!"

The room was silent.

"1...2...3..." The captain shook his head. "She's late again, isn't sh-"

The door slammed open.

"I'm here!"

Cain looked at her. The captain lifted his eyebrows.

"You're almost on your third strike, Lieutenant. Please try arriving earlier next time."

"Yes Sir, I'm sorry."

When the ceremony ends, the soldiers went to their posts. Her friends immediately circled her.

"Is your ex harassing you again?"

"Your water died for the fourth time this week?"

"Oh, you won't believe it," Luann rolled her eyes.

After hours of talking, Luann went into the empty kitchen. She sighed. Finally, her morning coffee!

"Your hand is under the dispenser."

Luann jumped. Cain looked at her fingers.

"They're still there."

He gently pushed her hand away, putting the cup under the dispenser.

"Hey, I can do it myself!"

He said nothing and walked out with his coffee. Her cheeks flushed.

Does he think she's an idiot or something?

Well ok, maybe she was about to burn her fingers the first time, but she could move her own hands! And that face, he's pretty oh right, but he's just as aloof as everyone said! He's not even skillful...

Luann shook her head. What is she thinking. He's literally the top dogs in the special ops, while she's just a lieutenant in the regular army known for her annoying exes and landlord.

Sheryl walked in.

"Luann, the captain asked for you."

Her? She rushed to the office-

"The door is about to open."

Luann froze in terror. The door was inches from hitting her forehead. She looked up. Cain held the door.

"Th-thanks-"

Cain walked away. That bastard!

She closed her eyes. Take a deep breath.

Luann walked in and saluted.

"You call me, Captain?"

"Yes, please have a seat. As you know, one of the members of the special ops is currently sick and wouldn't be available until next month. The special ops need one more personnel for their upcoming mission... are you up for it?"

Luann thought for a while. Why her- wait, that's not important. She should always be ready to take new responsibilities, and besides, this is a good chance to knock the ego out of that pretty face!

She grinned.

"Yes, Sir!"

Wood and metal rankled against each other as the train wobbled left and right. The oil lamp brightens and dims, and dust fell from the ceiling.

Luann staggered to the right, trying to maintain her balance. The payment was $3000, oh right, but.... Why her?? Why was she more focused on screwing that bastard – now sitting calmly reading a newspaper – and didn't ask the captain why her?? She may be a Lieutenant, but she has never even entered any major battlefield. This train, if anything, reminded her of the world war movies.

Gunshots clunked against the metal wall. The guerilla! Luann took the nearest rifle and knelt under the window, taking her aim.

Their surrounding is pitch black!

A bullet flashed through the air, creating a brief spark. Her eyes perked. That's it! They must focus on the area around the sparks!

Suddenly, the train wobbled right again.

"AAAAH-"

Luann froze. She didn't wobble right. Cain leaned against her. He wasn't holding a gun-?

Their headsets crackled.

"Open fire!"

Gunshots rang through the air as the train continued speeding, wobbling left and right as the bullets pierce through its walls. Cain stayed beside her, keeping her steady.

"Don't think about the train falling apart and just focus on shooting. The less you hit the more bullets we take."

"Why don't YOU shoot?"

"You took my rifle. We only have limited rifles until we reach the next post."

"Wait, what?"

"Ok, your aiming is indecent!"

"I'm trying, ok???"

"Look at the trajectory of the spark too and take into account our speed."

"Like...this?"

"Yes, exactly!"

Luann narrowed her eyes. He's right! There are now less bullets hitting their train. Never in her three years of service had she thought about physics this deep.

"Also watch out for the grenades. Shoot that one first."

"GRENADES??"

"Fire!"

Shoot down... grenades? Luann stared at the flying object. Her hands felt so slow.

"Fire, fire, fire!"

She pressed the rifle. The bullet missed. Cain pulled her down to the floor. The noises around them scattered in explosions.

"I-I'm sorry!"

"Do you still want to shoot?"

Shoot? Don't they have to evacuate? The train is literally falling apart!

Cain put the rifle in front of her and pointed to the window.

"That grenade, aim for it."

Luann gritted her teeth and pulled the trigger. The grenade exploded mid-air. She smiled. She got it on second try! And marksmanship isn't even her skill! Does he see that? She looked at Cain, but Cain turned to the window again.

"That other two grenades, shoot them down too."

DANG THIS MAN! AN OH-SO-MIGHTY WHO ONLY CARES ABOUT SHOOTING THINGS DOWN! FINE, SHE'LL SHOOT THEM ALL DOWN!

After what felt like decades, the train finally stopped. The attacks have died down. Luan slumped to the floor.

"I have A LOT OF SPACE to improve, right?"

Cain got up.

"Yea, I think so."

Luann almost cried in annoyance. The audacity! Her marksmanship just now would be one of the top 50s in the regular army, for goodness's sake! Anyone else would have congratulated her!

Cain's walkie-talkie crackled.

"O-3, Cain here, reporting."

"Have you reached the next post?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Excellent, proceed with the second phase of the operation."

Luann's jaw dropped. Second phase? As if that long gruelling ride was just the first phase?

"How many phases do we have left?"

"9 phases, at least- Lieutenant Luann, are you ok?"

Luann nodded. Totally! Why is she so stupid? They're special ops! Would she finally die today? Just rethinking her life choices, that's all!

"Formation 5. On your heed, ready."

Formation 5? Are they ambushing? Cain brandished his knife.

"Are you sure you're not holding the gun?"

"Yes. Sergeant Jax, take your gun and come with me. Corporal Kurt, Corporal Ian, Sergeant Ben, prepare your knives and come with me too. The lieutenant will be taking my position."

Newbie? The other special ops looked at her. She wasn't exactly skilled, but she did help to keep their train in-tact.

"Lieutenant Luann?"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

"I'm Warrant Officer Elle. You're familiar with the formations, right?"

"Yes Ma'am, but formation 5- are we looting the supplies?"

"Looting back, to be exact. As soon as we step off the train, it'll be enemy territory. That's why Cain and Kurt went off first. As soon as they sent us a signal, we'll get off and open fire. Understand?"

Luann nodded.

"Yes, Ma'am!"

Elle chuckled.

"You're the first Lieutenant we've worked with! We don't use many formalities here, so please don't call me Ma'am when we're only talking. Elle will do."

"Yes Ma-ahem, Elle."

Their walkie-talkie crackled. That's the signal! They walked carefully into the hall.

"Proceed to the basement. Maintain formation 5 and watch out for lurkers until the third floor. Wipe out the entire attackers from there on."

"Yes, Sir."

Gunshots rang across the air again. Cain's position was in the middle, and if he was there, he would oversee all the attackers, from wherever direction. But since Luann was in charge, she should focus on the snipers instead.

They cleared the floor one by one until they finally reached the entrance to the basement. Luann wiped her forehead. It was less challenging than the train shootout, but the number of enemies are crazy, and worse, they are seeing them up close. They were descending stairs instead of ascending, but maintaining the formation for such a long time is exhausting – not to mention the number of times she almost stumbled down.

The team paused. It was silent. Bodies laid in pools of blood. Have the five wiped them out? Most of them died of knife wounds rather than bullets. Chills ran down Luann's spine.

"Maintain the formation! Keep an eye out for lurkers!"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

Suddenly, a bullet flashed through the team. Luann jolted. A sniper!

"Luann!"

"Yes, sorry!"

She should have took care of it! But that sniper's moving so fast- Luann blinked. What was that? A knife flashed to his head, and a second after, he laid dead. Cain stepped out, retrieving his knife.

"Is everything clear, captain?"

"Yes, except for the basement. The three of you, be on the outer lookout. Guide the exit. Warrant Officer Elle, kick down the door."

The door slammed down. They trace down the steps. It was clear.

Luann's eyes widened. There are piles of weapons of all sorts, organized in boxes. So this was the supply that Cain mentioned, but they wouldn't be able to take all, right...?

"Equip yourselves. Elle, Dan, and Yos, as soon as you finish, go up and take turns with the three that guard the exit so they can recharge their weapons too."

"Yes, Sir!"

Luann opened her tactical bag. It sure does fit a lot more than her regular uniform. She haven't use knives, tasers, flashlight, or grenades so they are alright... the only thing she would need are ammunitions, and given the circumstances, she better take a decent amount.

"Take one extra walkie talkie and several emergency batteries too."

The nerd!

"Yea, I know!"

Cain scoffed, looking away.

The team was now ready. Cain's walkie talkie crackled.

"O-3, Cain here, reporting."

"Have you finished phase 2?"

"Yes, Sir-"

"CAIN! We're under attack! Level 9!"

Cain tilted his head. Level 9? Their position must have been exposed from the train shootout. He clicked his walkie talkie again.

"Major General, we are under urgent attack."

"How do you assess your chance of survival?"

"We'll have to split the team Sir, but I'll see to it that my comrades return unharmed."

"Excellent, then I'll leave the rest of the plan to you, Captain."

"Aye, Sir."

Cain looked around.

"Elle, Jax, Kurt, Steph, Eric, you'll proceed to phase 5 and 6 of the rescue operation. Escort Greg, Vic, and Dan who'd bring the rest of the supplies to phase 3 and 4 until you part in the third fourths. Yos, Ian, Ben, Fer proceed to the hijack and disablement operation, phase 7 to 8. The rest of you, proceed to the assault for dispersion, phase 9 to 10. Leave the area as soon at most at 19 o'clock using the train."

"The lieutenant too?"

Oh right, the newbie. Cain looked at Luann, thinking hard. Luann looked back at him, almost narrowing his eyes. That pretty mind must be thinking hard if she'll survive any of the operation!

"She'll join the hijack and disablement, but the assault team should move first, then. I'll be on the assault team. If there are any problems, report back to me. Keep an eye out every time because we're surrounded by the enemies."

"Yes, Sir!"

And with that, their team split. Luann looked longingly at the departing helicopter. Why oh why can't she join the supply team instead?

"Lieutenant?"

"Ah, yes?"

"The assault team have widened their attack, so we're going to start our operation soon. We do have a plan, but things often go array, so would you be able to lead us?"

"Me?? Aren't you all more experienced?"

"Well, you have the highest rank," they grinned embarrassedly. "Yos and Ian here might often accompany Cain to disable CCTVs and assist in shoot outs, but they just joined the team last year. Fer and I have been here for more than two years, but we're mostly on the technical side and rely on the higher ranks to strategize live."

Does that mean she'll be leading a special ops operation? Luann's eyes lit up. That's so dang cool!

"Of course I'll lead, let's go!"

And of course, Luann had barely any experience leading a team too.