(Spangdahlem Base, Spangdahlem - June 3, 0412 hrs.)

Echo Team arrived at the monitor to be briefed by Admiral Raines. As usual, they saluted.

"Admiral, all members are accounted for." Walter reported.

"Good, because we need to strike back fast." The admiral began to brief them. "That attack is an indication that they are willing to use unconventional means to get what they want."

"Affirmative. Just say the word."

The screen then displays an improved image of the area in Ålfotbreen. Included is another picture with a marked suspicious building.

"We have further intelligence that there is a data center at the aforementioned area early on. Your objective is to take whatever they have and we can decrypt it to see what they are up to. Expect heavy resistance. Top Cat out."

The monitor then stopped transmitting Raines' signal.

A few minutes later, the Raven that will be assigned to transport Echo Team to Norway has already finished preparations for departure. When the team arrived with their weapons now stocked up and gear ready, it is only a few moments away from take-off.

Fredericka then remember something.

"Cap, can you give me a few minutes to see Izetta?" She requested.

"Affirmative. Just make it quick." Walter agreed.

Fredericka then began to find the girl. It only took a few seconds for the operative to see the witch curiously walking within the area.

"Izetta!"

"Finé? What are you doing?" The witch asked.

"We're going to find those who are who are after you. No matter what happens, you'll be safe with the soldiers."

"You will?"

The operative nodded with a smile.

"Then let me help as well. I can't let you go on this alone."

"We'll be fine. Besides, we are SCARs."

"SCARs?" Izetta scratches her head in confusion.

"Special operatives, to put things simply. A'ight, I better go." Fredericka then began to regroup with her colleagues.

"Be careful." A word was said in a lowly tone by the witch. A moment later, the Raven is rising up before slowly heading out for Norway.

Izetta then began to show some concern for Fredericka and the rest of the team, fearing for their safety.

"No...they can't do this alone."

(Ålfotbreen - 0552 hrs.)

As the dropship approaches the DZ, the pilot began to scan the environment for any potential hazards. A few minutes later, he began to relay to the team.

"All clear, Echoes." The pilot said. "Clear to proceed."

"Roger that." Walter responded with a thumbs-up. "Dune, Spectre, time to hustle."

"Affirmative." Fredericka with the "Dune" callsign replied

"Got it, chief." Hebert with the "Spectre" callsign followed.

With their specialized skydiving equipment ready, they stand beside the side door as it is being opened. A moment of last-minute scanning ensured that no hostile forces are in sight.

"Go, go!" Hebert shouted and the team jumped out of the aircraft one-by-one before beginning their dive to the ground.

The pilots, meanwhile, began their return home when beeping from their radar was heard. It showed one approaching at high speed.

"Uh...hold on, is that a bogey approaching?" The co-pilot asked.

"Shit!" The colleague reacted before beginning to maneuver quickly. "Deploying countermeasures!"

The bogey turned out to be Izetta as she flew past the dropship surprising the pilots in the process.

"What the fuck is that?!" His eyes were wide open.

Izetta turned around to see the pilots.

"Uh...is she flying on a large freaking gun?!" The co-pilot wondered just as the mysterious girl approaches the cockpit.

"Where is Finé?" She asked in a bemoaning manner.

The pilots remained shocked.

"Are you hearing what she is saying?" The pilot asked.

"Negative."

"WHERE IS SHE?!"

Knowing that she will not be able to hear them, the pilots pointed their fingers to the right to show her where the team is heading.

"Huh?" She began to fly to find her and the team.

When the team is near the first checkpoint, Walter began to communicate via radio for the change in direction.

"3...2...1...dive!" Walter said and the team began diving to the ground.

At this point, they are closing in on the ground fast.

"Slow!"

Their boost rigs were then engage to drastically reduce the impact of the fall and they landed safely; however, Hebert's landing was a bit too hard.

"Oww!" He uttered.

"You okay?" Fredericka asked as she offered him help in getting up.

"Yeah...I'll be fine." He then grabbed her hand in order to stand up.

"Okay, now that we are here, time to head south." Walter said. "The data center shouldn't be far away."

"Roger."

A radio transmission was then picked up.

"Seagull, what's the situation?"

"Be advised, a red-haird girl flying a large gun is heading for your position." He reported.

"Izetta!?" Fredericka reacted.

Just like that, she appeared riding the weapon.

"Finé!" She greeted excitedly.

"Izetta, what are you doing here?" Hebert asked. "This is more dangerous than what happened back in Spangdahlem."

"I know, but you might need me if anything get worse." She offered assistance.

"You sure about it? I mean, it's quite a risk." Walter was not convinced.

"I'm sure about it."

The team began struggling to think of a concrete answer to her offer and began to come together to discuss.

"You sure about this, chief?" Hebert started the discussion. "If the Neuer Falke wanted her so badly, they would be waiting for us right now."

"Yeah...me too. I don't want her get into any more harm just like all of us." The captain aired his concern.

"Speaking of which, remember the files back at the Nazi lab in Austria?" Fredericka began to recap their previous operation. "If those papers are correct, then that means that she could be holding on to more powers than we ever seen."

"Affirmative."

"What should it be, sir?"

A few seconds of thinking was used by the captain before turning to see Izetta.

"Izetta?"

"Yes?" She responded.

"If you want to help, try not to get yourself captured out there."

"Ah...thank you." The witch was glad to hear.

"Echoes, move out." The team began to resume their journey to the data center while bringing along Izetta.

"So hey, I didn't know you much aside from Finé here."

"Oh, we didn't introduce ourselves yet, I see?" Walter responded. "I'm Captain Hendrick Walter."

"First Lieutenant Jude Hebert, nice to meet you." The Canadian introduced himself.

Izetta then turned her attention to Fredericka.

"And how about you Finé?"

"Warrant Officer Ortfiné Fredericka." The female operative followed. "That's my name."

"I'll just call you Finé. May I?"

"Not here at least. Just call me "Dune" in operations like this, okay?"

"Okay." Izetta nodded.

After 71 minutes of traversing, Walter spotted the center. He signalled the team to halt.

"Data center in sight." He said while signalling them to take a look with their binoculars. "Half a klick away."

"I see it. Got a small patrol with two vehicles, mounted with MGs."

"Alright. Dune, with me. We're gonna hack into their security cameras and see where the mainframes are."

"Solid copy, sir." Fredericka responded before heading out with Walter.

"Spectre, Izetta, remain here and provide over-watch."

"Affirmative." Hebert followed while preparing his KBS Longbow. "Izetta, time to play the waiting game."

The two operatives quietly moved closer to the center via a forested patch of terrain. Suddenly, the sound of an approaching truck alerted them.

"Vehicle inbound, take cover." Walter and Fredericka dived for cover and the truck passed through without incident.

"Let's go."

The duo then moved closer to the perimeter fence.

"I'll get us in. Watch my six." Fredericka informed.

"Copy."

She began to use a laser cutting tool to make a hole through the fence while Walter provided support. Once the hole was made, Fredericka tapped the captain that it is done and he gave a nod.

At the mountains, Hebert was closely monitoring the situation in the data center.

"So hey, Finé told me about you being part of SCARs. Just what are they?"

"The Special Combat Air Recon?" Hebert responded. "Well, to put things simply, we are a special forces branch assigned for recon and covert ops. You know, wreck things from behind."

"It's just like what Fredericka said."

"At least you get a general description of who we are." He then began to radio his teammates in the center. "Spectre to Longbow, what's your situation?"

"We entered the facility." Walter reported. "Got anything on your end?"

"Negative, no changes to the situation, over."

"Copy. Keep an eye out. Out." The transmission then ended before Hebert decided to inquire about the witch. "Now Izetta, what about you?"

"To be honest, I was the last witch and my grandmother told me not to use my magic to interfere with the affairs of the world."

"No wonder the Germans were after you." He expressed his curiosity.

"But that's not all: all of my magic comes from the ley lines underground. My grandmother told me that these are the sources of our powers."

"Can you feel it?" Izetta then began to focus to check for the intensity of the ley lines below her.

"It should be sufficient enough for us if anything goes wrong."

"Good."

Inside, Walter and Fredericka quietly made their way to a door with their suppressed weapons ready. Walter then hacked the security system of the door to allow them entry.

"After you, Captain." Fredericka uttered.

The doors were then closed to avoid arousing suspicion from the guards. Upon entering, they scanned their surroundings to keep an eye out for any hostile forces. They spotted one in a room reading some papers. The duo quietly slipped away from him

"All clear." Fredericka confirmed after looking at the hallways in front and at the back.

They then heard footsteps from a patrol.

"Take cover."

The patrol began passing by the hallways in their normal routine.

"Negative on the west section. Heading east, over." They then moved away to allow the operatives to move forward.

The team then stumbled upon a CCTV room where a guard is watching the monitors.

"Got a guard here." Fredericka confirmed before quietly moving in for the kill with her knife. The guard noticed her when she is very close.

"Wha-" He was then cut off as he was muffled and killed by the operative.

"Hacking the cameras now. Stand by." Fredericka then began to use her wrist computer to access while Walter began to report their status to Hebert and Izetta.

"Specter, this is Longbow. We are accessing the cameras. Tell Command to request air support if things go south. Looks like comms would be dark for a while."

"Copy, standing." Hebert responded. "No changes so far. Out."

A few moments later, Fredericka managed to find a feed for the mainframe room in the second basement.

"Captain, I'm going to download the location to you. Mainframe's floors down. We can use the cameras to see any guards."

"Good work."

Fredericka then selected the area where the mainframe is located before sending the location to her captain's wrist computer. They then began to head out.

(0742 hrs.)

Outside, Hebert and Izetta were watching the area when the former spotted a large convoy approaching the datacenter.

"Shit! Got a problem here."

"What did you see?" Izetta asked.

"Convoy's moving inside." He began to show Izetta his finding via the scope. "See it?"

Izetta widely opened her eyes upon seeing the group of trucks and HMMWVs.

"Finé and the captain might be in trouble."

"Yeah...alas, communication might be cut off if the mainframe's underground."

"What should we do then?"

Hebert began to think of an idea in order to ensure Walter and Fredericka's safety and success in the mission.

"Izetta, think you can grab one of their big guns?"

"I can."

At the second basement, the duo began following their wrist computers to the room. Upon approaching the door leading to the mainframe, the two began to hack; Fredericka was assigned to disable security protocols while Walter focused on the doors.

"Protocols down. Clear to move." Fredericka confirmed.

"Roger that." The captain responded.

They entered the room and began to see a tower of servers.

"Alright, time to get what we came for and get the hell out of here." He began to use a specialized computer to connect to the mainframe and access the files. "I'm in; beginning the download."

"Make it quick, Captain." Fredericka suggested.

"I know."

The download began and a treasure trove of files were being stored for decryption back at the UNSA headquarters. During the process, Walter stumbled upon something that caught his eyes.

"Huh...'Project Hexen?'" He began to examine it more closely.

"Captain?"

"Might wanna look at this." All eyes were on the monitor as a file containing research data was discovered by the captain. "Whatever it is, we need this thing analyzied ASAP."

"Affirmative."

A few moments later, the download is finished.

"Let's go." The computer disconnected from the servers.

Just as they are about to exit the door, another patrol spotted the duo.

"Over the-" Instinctively, the two shot them dead to prevent them from relaying the alert.

"Window's closing fast." The captain made a projection of their plan of escape.

"Stairs are over there; we can use that." Fredericka pointed at the emergency stairs.

"Good thinking. Watch those corners."

The two opened the door to the stair and began to walk towards the ground floor. Fredericka then began to contact Hebert and Izetta.

"Spectre, can you read me?" She asked while under static. "Spectre, come in."

A single level has passed and the static remained. It wasn't long before it began to clear up.

"Dune, I read you but we've got a problem here." He began to report his finding. "A medium-sized convoy just entered the area. We're on our way to help you guys get out of here. Until then, a direct firefight might be unavoidable."

"Solid copy. We'll be careful." The transmission ended.

Outside, Hebert and Izetta arrived near the perimeter.

"Looks like this is the place." Hebert confirmed. "Izetta, follow me and stay down."

"Okay." The witch agreed with a nod.

The sniper began to look for an opportunity to do a sneak attack. What he found satisified him: three canisters containing flammable material are standing idly beside a HMMWV inside a garage depot.

"There." He told Izetta. "I'll shoot those canisters so that we can divert much of their attention away from us."

"This is Longbow, we are outside the building; awaiting your signal." Walter informed.

"Roger, stand-by. Gonna make the canisters explode."

He aimed his sniper rifle at the canisters. A few moments later, he fired a single shot to make one of the canisters leak. When the second shot is fired, the impact created a spark creating an ignition.

"Boooomm!" He merrily uttered as the explosion alerted the soldiers.

"Explosion...get the fire out!" One shouted in shock.

As expected, an alarm was sounded. Then, the two operatives arrived.

"Looks like you made one hell of a fireworks." He complemented Hebert's idea.

"Time to get out of here." The team then began to head out for the fence.

In the middle of their escape, one of the Neuer Falke soldiers spotted them.

"Hostiles, over there!" He shouted and the others near him opened fire.

"Take cover!" Walter shouted and the team hid behind the trees.

"Throwing blackout!" Fredericka shouted before arming and throwing a Blackout Grenade towards the guards.

"Aaahhh!" A few reacted upon experiencing temporary hearing and sight loss due to the detonation. They were later gunned down.

"Guys, remember those vehicles we saw at the gates?" Izetta asked. "We could use those."

"Not a bad idea, Izetta." Walter complemented. "If we could stay alive a little longer, we can escape with those vehicles. Let's move!"

Using the environment, they quietly head for the entrance and the two vehicles remained in their place.

"Take out those guards so that we can command one." Fredericka said.

With their weapons aimed at the soldiers, they prepare to fire. Hebert then gave Izetta another Blackout Grenade.

"Think you can throw this?" He asked.

"What's this?" She inquired about the cylindrical device.

"Blackout Grenades, stuns people with hearing and vision loss. They last only for a few moments upon detonation. Press the black button on top of it to arm the grenade for detonation but you have a few moments to throw it."

She took another glimpse of the grenade before focusing her magic on it. This made the soldiers curious.

"Eeeh...what are you doing?" Fredericka wondered.

"Get ready the moment it detonates. I'm enhancing it with my magic."

Once the magic is fused, she pressed the black button and threw it hard towards the guards. It then landed near the guards before it detonated, causing a bright lingering flash that lasted for a brief moments. Once it subsided, Walter began to give the order.

"Now!" The team then fired at the soldiers killing them in almost an instant. "Clear."

The team rushed toward the vehicles.

"I'll hotwire this. Give me a few minutes." Hebert began his attempt to turn on the vehicle with his wrist computer.

Suddenly, more Neuer Falke soldiers began to appear. Among them are C5 battle robots with their reinforced armour.

"Hostilles inbound!" Fredericka warned.

"Light them up!" Walter shouted and they began to open fire.

"Eek!" Izetta took cover to protect herself.

"Let's see if they like this!" Fredericka then began to hack into one of the robots successfully and used it to kill as many as five soldiers before activating the self-desctruct.

"Stay clear!" When it detonated, three more soldiers lost their lives.

A moment later, the vehicle was turned on.

"GET IN! We're outta here!" Hebert confirmed.

The team began to ride the vehicle after the other two operatives provided cover fire. Their escape began.

"We have an escaping vehicle heading east. Stop 'em!" One Neuer Falke soldier reported.

While the vehicle is driving fast, Walter began to contact their transport.

"Seagull, this is Longbow, we have the package and are proceeding to primary exfil for extraction. How copy, over?" He said.

"Copy, heading for primary exfil. Out." Seagull responded.

Then, a Neuer Falke gunship is approaching.

"Damn them, Vultures!" Fredericka uttered with disgust.

Izetta then turned her attention to the machine gun mounted on the vehicle.

"Finé, help me with this." She requested. "I need it detached."

"You sure?" Fredericka responded.

"I'm sure."

Fredericka nodded in agreement before using the cutting tool to detach the machine gun from the mount.

Inside the Vulture, the pilots began to see the escape vehicle.

"This is Wiesel 2-1, I have the target on sight." One of them reported.

A few moments later, the gun is detached before Izetta began to emit a greenish glow as she began to manipulate it. The weapon is now covered in the same magical aura.

"Be careful, Izetta." Fredericka encouraged.

A nod then came from the witch as she began to sit on it and fly away to distract the Vulture. The female operative momentarily gave a salute.

The Vulture got a lock on the vehicle once it got closer.

"Target locked."

Izetta then flew past the cockpit with the machine gun, surprising the pilots.

"What is that?!" The copilot reacted.

"It's her, the witch!"

Izettal began to allow the Vulture to chase her in order for Echo Team to lose heat. The latter on the ground began to see her and the aircraft in a game of cat-and-mouse.

"Is Izetta getting that gunship off us?" Hebert asked after looking back for a moment.

"Yeah. She is." Walter agreed.

The gunship opened fire on the witch but the bullets missed.

"Yow!" She reacted while quickly evading. "That's close!"

"I can't get a lock on her!" The pilot was disgusted.

She then began to turn her attention to the mountains.

"That's it."

She turned left hard and began to speed towards the mountains of Ålfotbreen while the Vulture continued pursuing her. When she is near the terrain, she flew close to the ground in an effort to make it crash.

It was then known to her that it will not fall for the trick, so instead she bit her right thumb and splattered blood onto the snow below her. The Vulture pilot then got a clean lock.

"Good-bye, witch!"

Suddenly, the snow began to form icy spikes which tore through the gunship. Electrical systems and flight controls were disabled in an instant and the aircraft crashed, then tumbled violently. It then exploded in a fiery wreck after.

"Whew!" Izetta sighed before beginning her return to Echo Team.

The team noticed that nothing is chasing them.

"Is it over?" Hebert asked.

Fredericka scanned the skies for Izetta and she finally saw her returning.

"She's back!" She shouted happily.

"Thank goodness...whew!" Walter sighed in relief as Izetta returned to the flatbed.

"Got that whatever is chasing us." The witch said.

Suddenly, a hug from Fredericka was received.

"Thank you." Fredericka expressed her gratitude. "Thank you for your help."

All the witch did was to give a warm smile as the Raven arrived to pick them up for extraction.

(Unknown location - 1932 hrs.)

News of the raid on the Ålfotbreen datacenter has reached the ears of the high-ranking officers as chaotic talking took place. The officers were stunned to hear the events during that time.

In one area, one of the them went to the monitor to see his superior.

"Sir, we have reports that the witch is now affiliated with the UNSA forces." He reported. "Some of the survivors even recounted seeing her with possible SCAR team operatives."

"Hmmm...that's a shame. Now with her in the picture, things will be complicated from that point onward." The one in the monitor expressed his disappointment.

"I would also like to report that the cloning of the deceased witch is on schedule as we speak."

"That's good. We should be able to mitigate most of the damage. In the meantime Krause, continue with your duties. The SDF will be sending us some new weapons soon to make use of."

"Thank you, sir."

The monitor was then switched off to end the transmission before the officer began to leave.

XXXXXXX

"Over there! Stop her!"

"She's getting away!"

"Aaaaaahhh!"

"We have the witch on hand. Put her on sleep. Also...no witnesses."

"No."

"Aaaaahh!"

A nightmare made Izetta awake as she is scarred from what happened before her reawakening.

(Spangdahlem Base, Spangdahlem - June 4, 0632 hrs.)

"Where am I?"

Holding her blanket, she looked around and remembered that she is not in her time anymore. Obvious to her are a single unusually-designed lamp and the sounds of unusual noises outside.

"That's right...I'm not in the village. I'm in the future now."

A knock then reached her ears.

"Izetta?" The voice of Fredericka was heard. "I'm coming in."

"You may."

Fredericka showed some concern after closing the door. Then, she sat down on Izetta's bed.

"I heard you shouting. Is it a nightmare that made you get up?"

"Yeah." Izetta answered. "The night I was captured by those soldiers."

"Pretty traumatic when you are locked up in a capsule and not seeing the light of day for a very long time."

"You could say that." Izetta then began to ask something. "So hey, I was thinking, just what happened after Germany lost when I was locked away?"

"Well, after that, things went pretty downhill quite slowly. The countries of Russia and the United States, they were hostile to each other for a few decades in a period known as the 'Cold War.' Though they didn't fight each other directly, they have a few allies to do their work and often supported those factions in secret."

"Like what?"

"Korea, Suez, Vietnam, Afghanistan...those are a few examples of those conflicts. Then after that, Russia just gave up and America became the dominant superpower. That peace didn't last long: insurgencies in the Middle East, 9/11, and eventually..."

"What? What is it?"

Fredericka took a small breath before beginning to reveal the answer."

"...World War III."

Izetta was taken aback.

"Unbelievable." Izetta uttered.

"Thanks to some vendettas, nationalism and such, wars generally never change."

The witch bowed her head in sadness.

"But..." Fredericka began to assure her.

"Huh?"

"...there are good things that happen as often as the wars itself: moon landings, iPods, Game Boys, Band Aid..."

""iPods"?" Izetta was confused. "Moon landings?"

"There are times when we can make things better for everyone. And here we are now, the stars." Fredericka began to show Izetta the window. "You see the skies above? Mankind has reached the point where space is the limit."

"Wow." The witch uttered in both awe and curiosity.

"I could show you...one day."

Izetta shed a small tear from her eyes as Fredericka's offer was received.

"Thank you...Finé."

A/N: Play any of your favorite Call of Duty, anime, or any other music of your choice because the second chapter is here for all the lovers out there.