Through the Sights - Arc 1

Prologue
Day Unknown - 16:42:33

''CPT. Laura Schwarzerfeld''

Althern Border

I take a deep breath, and close my left eye, zooming in on my targets at the same time. The wind was picking up, a storm brewing nearby. I scanned the perimiter, a small compound consisting of a small, abandoned supply hangar in the heart of the snowy woodlands, near a clearing between the dense pine trees. I hear my radio buzz, and some creeking chatter sounds from the device. My teammates were coördinating their positioning around the valley.

Accompanying me here were three other marksmen. They were experienced snipers, all of them possesing almost maximum lethality with their rifles. I peered around the valley through my scope, trying to locate them. Through the snowfall, I could spot the first of the bunch on my right, a few hundred meters lower then myself. He wore his own custom camouflage ghillie suit, and he was lying prone amidst the snow and tall grass.

I swept my weapon left across the valley, and settled my sight on the two remaining marksmen. They too were blending in, but no ghillie suits. They hid behind a few boulders, looming far above the valley below. One of them was holding a rangefinder binocular, the other was peering through his rifle.

"My my..." I sighed deeply, and reared my weapon back to my targets.

I used a custom-designed sniper rifle, called the 'Valkyrie'. The name was fancy, but that was purely because I liked the sound. And if you think about it, it has a deeper meaning, something that seems lost to most players these days.

I checked my magazine, and wiggled myself through the grass, creeping forwards. I was concealed enough, to my satisfaction, with the tall grass covering my entire body and the majority of my rifle. The snow and blizzard like winds felt harsh, the cold biting through my dense clothing.

"...Laura!..." My radio buzzed once more. "We're all clear, waiting for you to take the opening shot."

"Got it." I replied as I stuffed the device away in my bag.

I took one final breath, and zoomed in. The distance was easily within effective range, and my crosshairs lined up perfectly with the first player's head. They were in a group of five, watching over the compound, all equiped with top-notch gear and guns. One of their vehicles, a simple pick-up truck, was badly covered with green mesh, sticking out in the open against the pure white of the snow, like a sore blister.

Who I killed first did not matter to my team. I owed them a favor, and this was the last piece of payment I had to fulfill. All I had to do, was lay these few suckers to waste.

I exhale. Five shots leave the barrel of the Valkyrie in a mere second, too fast for my team to react to. The bodies of the players are launched backwards by the impact of the shots, and they remain on the ground, motionless.

I quickly adjust my scope towards the hangar's opening, trying to spot any movement behind the broken glass and the rusted iron plating. The snowfall was gentle enough that it didn't hinder my sight too much.

I panted heavily, the recoil from the shots slowly sinking away.

I pick up my radio, and switch it back on.

"...Targets down..."