Once again as the information was sent to him, Zachariah looked it over carefully, making sure he didnâ€™t miss a damn thing. It was frustrating that he now had to pull off an unexpected search and rescue but if it wouldnâ€™t be fair if he rejected it. Again, Elias was helping him so the least he could do was search for this Lucian character for him. Time was precious and there was no room for error so they had to seek this man out fast and hope for the best however part of him did worry about being too late. He pushed those thoughts aside, keeping a calm, neutral expression on his face as he sent some of his workers to look further into the situation while he continued to speak with Elias. This hacker was their only hope, â€œAzrai and the others, assuming there are no delays, will be arriving here in about an hour. Is that enough time?â€ He paused for a moment, recalling telling Elias that his skills would indeed be tested. So far there has been nothing but success and he was not going to take any form of failure lightly. â€œMore importantly, if and when you do get in, is one hour enough time to completely destroy every last bit of information they have stored there?â€<br/><br/>There was darkness in Zachariahâ€™s tone which made his men cower slightly. It wasnâ€™t often that their boss used such a tone, and it was a definite sign that he was being serious about this. A brief excitement filled the air since things were so close to starting but it was quickly stopped before it escalated and proved to be a burden. There had to be silence in the room at all times. Looking to the people in the room, glancing to his monitors, and then looking at them again he decided he had enough people out on the field for the moment and needed them here. People were expendable as there were far too many in this world, but he wasnâ€™t about to leave himself defenseless. He was not someone who would throw everything he had on the frontlines, he was not stupid enough to do so, he did what he had to in order to get things done and done right.<br/><br/>These Sanctus Unum bastards were getting to him; they got to him the moment he saw Azrai had fallen into that state of mind back at the market. There would be hell to pay if he couldnâ€™t destroy that organization soon, or else Azrai would tear it apart with his bare hands if he got there firstâ€¦ and most likely get himself killed. Wouldnâ€™t that be interesting? Azraiâ€™s murderous state was intriguing however surely he was no match for bio-weapons. He didnâ€™t want to think too much about it, however, not until they got here and formed a plan of action. Hopefully they could avoid having Azrai fall into that state againâ€¦ it could be both beneficial and disastrous not to mention thinking about it made him feel like some sick fuck too selfish for his own good to use his friend like that. Zachariah rubbed the bullet wound scar on his chest again, wincing slightly. Never again. It was something that he regretted deeply and would probably always regret for the rest of his life.<br/><br/>â€œElias, someone of your skill level is able to take their security systems offline as well, am I right?â€ He spoke again to their ally, leaning back in his chair once more, folding his arms with an ever calm expression, â€œIf youâ€™re able, do so, if not give them something to play with while we storm in and take them out. Iâ€™m sure there are plenty of toys lying around for you to play with in a place like that.â€<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>A callous smile suddenly appeared on the manâ€™s expression as he listened once again to his bossâ€™s words. â€œChange of plans. Weâ€™re taking this one to the boss since heâ€™s proving to be a waste of time.â€ He leaned closer to the pilotâ€™s face, â€œHow does that sound to you, flyboy? Looks like the boss has other plans for you, you should have talked to us. Youâ€™ll love our boss; heâ€™s such a charismatic man once you get to know him. Gag him before you move him.â€ A sinister chuckle escaped him as he motioned for his men to drag the pilot to the car, forcing him to get inside despite the protest. This was going to be interesting, the man thought to himself, feeling the bloodlust stir within him once he could have sworn he felt someone watching them. Thanks to his enhancements, he was sensitive to things like eyes watching him or the feeling of being followed. He was on high alert right now and whoever was there, well, he was going to make sure they were dealt with.<br/><br/>But for now they had to get back to the lab. He didnâ€™t want to keep his boss waiting.<br/><br/>At first everything went smoothly but soon there was gunfire. They were shooting at him! This was not sitting well and a curse escaped him as he stepped on the gas. â€œWho the fuck?â€ He glanced in his rearview mirror to see a motorcycle speeding after them. â€œSir, weâ€™ve run into a slight problem, worry not for I will be taking the necessary actions to make sure this problem doesnâ€™t hinder us.â€ He told his boss through clenched teeth. They were so close. So fucking close. Everything the boss had planned was not about to go down in flames because of some prick on a motorcycle! However the question as who the hell was this? Surely they were not found so quickly? And damn it he knew they would draw the attention of authorities soonâ€¦<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>Deep down he knew Ivan was right but he still couldnâ€™t help but want to jump up and be a lone wolf. It was just how he was use to doing things, even around friends. As a hit man he never had to worry about people, as mentioned before, he only had himself to look out for. This whole bodyguard thing was definitely something he was not cut out for even if he did enjoy his time with Shizu before things got way too out of hand. He ran a hand though his hair and exhaled softly, his thoughts wandering a bit for a moment as he slowly brought himself out of that lone wolf state and focused on the task at hand. He was with friends now, he kept telling himself, but even then he felt they were only here because he had been a fuck up. Though he could never bring himself to hate Shizu he still wondered if she would have been better off if he hadnâ€™t accepted that mission. Of course now that question sounded rather silly but he couldnâ€™t help but think to himself the different possibilities.<br/><br/>However, in spite of his thoughts, he felt himself smooth back into his professional demeanor, more at ease now than he had been, knowing he had his friends with him now. Sometimes even he got a bit frustrated with his stubbornness though he never showed it. These two people among a few others were the only people he trusted to help him through a situation like this. He didnâ€™t need there to be any tension between them. Thoughts of apologizing or making a facetious remark crossed him but he decided to let it pass, knowing he would probably sound like he was feeling sorry for himself. He wanted to avoid all arguments and pity parties for the time being and just focus on what was going on before his eyes. Zachariah was waiting for them in Bethlehem and he would get all his answers from him as soon as they got there. He would have to calm his anxiety and nerves until then; it was hard because he was still very much on edge like everyone else was.<br/><br/>It was stuffy. Azrai felt like he was being suffocated in his own vehicle and rolled the window down a bit more. A part of him wanted to ask Maverick to let him drive but he knew it was better if he did since he was not in the condition to do so. He wanted to do almost anything to get this tension out of his mind; he didnâ€™t mean to be the cause of it among other things that lingered in the air. It was his fault for accepting this mission and the fact that he had allowed himself to fall into that bloodthirsty state of mind like he had. The others didnâ€™t show it but he had a feeling that was part of the reason they were so upset with him since it showed he had gotten too attached to Shizu. He knew he was going to hear about that later for sure and they didnâ€™t want to say anything in front of her. Not that he blamed them since he really couldnâ€™t deny that he had become attached and broke another golden rule they had amongst them. And now that he thought of it he was lying to himself, trying to convince himself that he was regretting this.<br/><br/>There was a long silence in the car as the drive progressed and they came to the battle-scarred border between the two territories lined with barbed wire fence and tight security. This was the side of Israel, the dark struggle over land, that he didnâ€™t want Shizu to see especially now with everything going on but it couldnâ€™t be helped. Zachariah needed them.<br/><br/>â€œDonâ€™t look now, but I think weâ€™re being followed. That blue truck has been tailing us for quite some time and I really donâ€™t like the look of it.â€ Maverick said quietly, wondering if they could possibly be monitoring any conversation that might be going on. They hadnâ€™t even been twenty minutes into Palestine and now this? It was getting irritating as hell and both Maverick and Azrai wanted it to be over. Azrai immediately looked behind him, wincing at the pain that reminded him his wounds were still there, and casually took noticed that there was indeed a blue truck behind them. It didnâ€™t look suspicious but then again the most suspicious things never jumped out and said â€˜hey look at me Iâ€™m suspicious as fuck and youâ€™d better keep your wits about you!â€™ anyway. He clenched his jaw, keeping a tight grip on his gun and looked to Ivan, wondering he was thinking the same thing. And then all of a sudden Maverick slammed on the brakes as someone stepped out into the middle of the road, causing themselves to be hit despite Maverickâ€™s attempts to avoid them, rolling off the windshield before lying motionless on the road.<br/><br/>A few civilians rushed over to see if the person hit was alright when suddenly the guy stood up seemingly unharmed and pulled a gun. â€œOh what the hellâ€¦â€ Maverick growled, throwing the car back into drive and slamming the gas pedal into the floor, hoping to get to Bethlehem before anything else showed up. But sure enough that blue truck was still following them and the man who got hit seemed to be keeping up with both vehicles. He even jumped into the back of the truck while he fired off a few rounds. Maverick did his best to avoid them but this wasnâ€™t like it was some movie and they were bound to take a few hits. Hopefully none of the bullets hit anyone, a quick glance in the rearview mirror revealed everyone was alright but who knew how long that was going to last. He set his mind on heading to Bethlehem. Zachariah had better fucking fill him inâ€¦<br/><br/>There was a road sign up ahead. They were getting closer. One mile until they reached Bethlehem; and it seems that Zachariah had already sent reinforcements. There were several gunshots fired but they were aimed at the people following them. Hopefully that would buy them some time... they were so close now...