infiltration

With Leon and Axel standing in front of Rice Memorial High School, the mission begins.

"The mission is in that high school? Don't tell me we're going after some kids who still believe everything they see on social media," Leon questions.

"No, not yet," Axel says as he digs in his pocket.

"Yet?!"

Axel hands an earpiece to Leon while placing one into his own left ear.

"Put it in, kid. This'll link us all up," Axel commands.

"I've never seen an earpiece this big," Leon says as he fits it into his ear.

"That's because there's a tiny camera installed in it. Make sure you keep your head steady so I can see what you see," a voice responds from the earpiece.

"Wait—Raven?!"

Back at the Squad Bastards base, Raven sits with headphones over her head and a mic at her mouth. On her monitor, the left side displays Axel and Leon's POVs; the right, a detailed layout of Burlington Catholic High School.

"Yes, Leon, it's me. You'll need me for this mission, so follow Axel's lead and listen to my commands. I'm the only way you two get in anyway," Raven replies.

She starts typing on her keyboard.

"Axel, the kitchen entrance around the back should already be unlocked."

Back in Vermont, Axel and Leon begin walking toward the rear of the school.

"Alright, kid, this is how most missions go. Us on the field, Raven in our ears, feeding us intel and handling everything behind the scenes—hacking, access, comms, you name it," Axel explains.

"But I still don't even know what the mission is! Honestly, I think we should go back to base and go over our notes," Leon suggests nervously.

"Don't worry, Raven handles that too. Go ahead and give it to him, gang!"

"Don't call me that. But here is the mission," Raven says. "A politician is about to be accused of forcibly gangbang-ing a woman with five other men. According to the notes, the woman agreed to sleep with him—until he invited his friends in. She removed consent. They didn't care. The incident happened years ago, but if this story goes public, his career is over."

"Wait, that's horrible—but if that happened in 2006, why is she coming out now?" Leon asks, eyes open.

"We don't know, kid. Why do you think we keep saying ' the politician'—no names, no details. Maybe she was scared . Maybe she found someone who finally listened. Point is, we don't get paid to ask questions," Axel replies.

"Axel's right," Raven adds. "The backstory comes straight from the mission brief, but this next part is what matters—so listen closely," Raven instructs.

"Yes of course!" Leon says quickly.

"In about an hour, the class of 2004 will gather in the Chapel for their high school reunion. The woman—our witness—and the politician both graduated that year. This is our best shot to find her and eliminate her before the accusations go public."

"Wait a minute! Are you saying we don't even know what she looks like?" Leon exclaims panicking.

"Unfortunately no. Her identity hasn't been released, and she's under privacy protection. The politician got a tip before it went public, so all we have is a silhouette. According to the attendance sheet, 143 alumni are attending the reunion. The politician is the only one not on that list."

As they reach the back of the building, Axel grabs the kitchen door handle.

"We're here, Raven," he reports.

"Confirmed. I was going to scan everyone inside and run facial recognition against the silhouette, but since Axel insists he has a faster method, I'll give him the floor," Raven says, confidently.

"Trust me. My way, we'll be done in two hours tops. Come on, Leon—we're going in."

"Wait—Axel. If this guy being accused can't even name who's accusing him, and still wants us to kill the woman… doesn't that kind of confirm he did it? Like—he's hiding something. If this guy gets into power…" Leon starts, biting his nails.

"Yeah, probably. Why?"

"Well… maybe I'm out of place since I'm not from here, but if there's even a chance this guy is guilty, letting him gain power would be bad for, like… the world!"

"Ugh, I hate when kids get all hero—like, Kid," Axel groans. "Listen. We don't care if this mission ends in global collapse. Our job is to do what we're told—no questions asked. That's Squad Bastards. So grow some balls out of that hairy pussy and let's go!" 

"Ughhh… fine! But I don't like this! It's not right!"

Axel opens the kitchen door and steps inside.

Standing there is a male cook sliding pizzas into the oven.

"Oh crap, we're caught already! They're gonna tie us up and burn us at the stake!" Leon whispers, flinching hard.