Rainbow Six: November Sun

20: "STAND BY"

HEREFORD, ENGLAND
RAINBOW HEADQUARTERS
SITUATION ROOM

The Situation Room at Rainbow HQ was tense. The normal chatter and busy bustling of the staff was hushed. Every glance, every voiced word or quick gesture to a colleague, was brisk and with purpose.

It all sounded far away to Finka.

The woman's vision was growing blurry. Her temple ached. She delicately pressed her fingertips against her closed eyes and tried to massage the throbbing pain behind them.

She blinked. The overhead lights seemed to blot her vision with hazy white spots, even with her eyes shut. It was as if she had mistakenly looked directly at the sun.

"— if you can read me. Over," Dokkaebi was saying, one hand pressed to her headset. Her gaze was distant. She tried to visualize the man she was speaking to; the man who had just volunteered his own life in place of those of Rainbow operators.

"I hear you," came Liam. His tone was stoic. "I've got a biohazard device here, uh - expertly engineered. It's—"

"We know," Dokkaebi interrupted smoothly. "We heard it all. Listen to me, Liam: grab the man's phone. What kind is it?"

"It's an iPhone. I don't know which model."

"I need the serial number."

"They filed it off. Uh - one second, I'll check the, uh... the settings. Fuck. Phone's locked."

Dokkaebi glanced over at Finka with apparent concern. "Get me your phone's serial number then," she instructed Liam, her eyes still on Finka. "I'll get a fix on your signal, and then be able to zero in on the tango's phone. Hurry."

Kapkan followed Dokkaebi's brief glance and saw Finka in obvious pain. He cleared his throat and nudged her discreetly. "Lera."

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

Finka willed her eyes open and didn't bother answering. She straightened at her seat and swiped on her tabletop screen, refocusing her attention on the situation at hand.

Dokkaebi was hammering away at her keyboard as Liam relayed his phone's serial number. She quickly routed a trace, picked up his signal, and triggered a proximity detection module. "Perfect," she announced. "I'll be in that tango's phone in twenty seconds."

"Roger that," came Liam. He cleared his throat nervously. "Be advised, I'm at forty-four seconds remaining."

"Copy forty-four seconds. Acknowledged." Dokkaebi was biting her lip nervously. "Stand by, my friend. I've got you."

While Dokkaebi stayed online with Liam, Finka switched channels to address Harry and the two Rainbow teams.

"All units, forty-three seconds until biohazard detonation. Repeat: forty-three seconds. Guardian is online with DSU bomb defusal expert. How copy?"

"Heard," came Harry's voice. His breathing was taxed, and Finka could tell he had been running. "We're prepping for detonation. Keep you posted. Over."

Finka nodded. She opened her mouth to call the status to Kate, but she suddenly felt light-headed. Her mouth turned to cotton, and the woman winced at the overhead lights. They were unbearably bright. Most of her vision was suddenly blurred, blanketed with a haze that remained even when she shut her eyes.

"Lera?" Maestro asked, removing his headset. "Finka. Hey."

Her eyelids twitched. Finka's mouth was so dry that she could not answer. The lights became brighter, and she raised her hand to shield her eyes. Her breathing was coming faster.

"Hey," called Dokkaebi. "Someone put up those pics Twitch sent. Right fucking now, please."

Finka instinctively swiped at her screen to send the images, but her fingers slid limply across the screen. She tried to ask for help, but the room was suddenly turning on its side.

Her vision went black.

* * *

DSU Captain Liam Willems stared at the timer counting down on the dead terrorist's phone. He had faced death many times, but now that it was certain, Liam was surprised at how oddly calm he felt.

He could not run now, after all; and, he supposed, he wouldn't feel anything. The blast would incinerate him instantaneously.

00:00:28

The man shifted on his feet, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. He looked at the vacant, lifeless eyes of the dead man, and his female companion just paces away.

"Fuck you both." Liam growled under his breath. He wiped beads of sweat from his brow. "Twenty-six seconds."

His earpiece crackled to life. "Affirmative," came Dokkaebi's voice. "I'm in. Grab his phone."

Liam did so. "Please tell my wife and sons that I love them."

"You're going to tell them yourself. Go to settings and turn Bluetooth off. Hurry."

"Done."

"Set the battery usage to low power, cut cellular data usage to all apps."

Liam didn't question her. "Done. Ten seconds."

"Go to the frontal rig on the IED vest. Listen to me very carefully: hold your phone - repeat your phone, not the tango's phone - up to the vest. Do it now, and hold still until I tell you otherwise."

"I... okay. Done." Liam shut his eyes tightly and braced himself for death. He had been counting down in his head, and didn't need to look at the timer to know he had two seconds left.

"Done!" Dokkaebi exclaimed. "We did it. You still with me, Liam?"

The man opened his eyes and looked down at the timer. "The t-timer is stuck at one second remaining." Liam let out a mighty sigh of relief. "Fuck me. I think it worked."