Aniahs Rewyas: Continuing right along here. Sorry for the delay. College has been really rough and I've been quite busy.

Another special thank you to my most dedicated reviewer, WolfKidBirdGirl.

Disclaimer: I own nothing more than the plot and the OC's (original characters). All else belong to the prospective owners.

Absolution

Chapter IV: Building the Bridge

Hours had passed since the morning sun warmed the Russian mountainside. The air was quiet as Makarov's men had yet to patrol the area. The snow was a blinding reflection against the sun. Handfuls of the smoothed flakes flew through the air and landed just a few inches away. In a matter of minutes several small piles began mounting around a seeping hole. Suddenly an ice pick pierced the snow as it crunched under a gloved hand. Sliding just a few inches, another ice pick perforated just enough for Yuri to poke his head from beneath ground. Pressing his weight onto his hands he tossed the ice picks to the side as he pulled himself to his feet. His eyes adjusted to the sunlight as he squinted at the area surrounding him.

"Oi!" Nikolai called for him beneath the hovel they created to hide from the storm. The Russian reached up his hands as Yuri quickly grasped them and pulled his comrade from the snow covered hole.

"Thanks." Nikolai chirped in Russian.

Yuri nodded and smiled before trying his headset.

"This is Yuri, calling for Bravo Six. Do you copy?"

Nikolai listened through his own ear piece before shaking his head.

Yuri sighed and turned to walk whenever, a voice responded to his message.

"This is Bullseye."

Freezing in their tracks, the two Russians looked at each other before tightening their grips on their MK46 and AK47.

"Bullseye?" Nikolai repeated.

"Da," She responded. "My location is approximately seven meters north of your destination. Walk straight and you both will see me."

"Why should we trust you?" Yuri snarled.

"Because I can be of great use to you. Just as you two can be of great use to me."

Yuri and Nikolai looked hesitantly at each other once more.

"I will take you to your men. Price and Soap." Bullseye urged.

Nikolai nodded before Yuri agreed to meet Bullseye, the short distance away. The walk was more and more daunting with each step. They passed a line of bushels before meeting the woman named Bullseye.

Dressed in black, the two watched as she turned around; hazel eyes matching Yuri's own green ones.

"We need to go. Makarov's men are-"

She closed her mouth before ducking behind the bushels. Yuri and Nikolai swiftly followed her as she looked over their shoulders. A truck pulled up behind as Russian chatter reached their ears. A few of the soldiers had still managed to find some of the bodies from the night before despite the storm. A small herd of dogs were scavenging the area, and inching closer to their location. The most recent scent left from their hovel didn't help the three of them either.

"Follow my lead." Bullseye whispered as Nikolai and Yuri nodded. Propping herself to her knees, she looked through her scope. They weren't too outnumbered. Taking the first shot, she watched as the first guard dropped dead. Nikolai and Yuri quickly took their shots after properly aiming.

"Come on, we don't have much time." She rushed off as they followed her. Rushing through the snow, Yuri noticed that Bullseye's hood had fallen as her short, spiked black hair had crimson tips blew behind her.

As they rounded a corner at the center of the mountain, Yuri and Nikolai noticed her look up at the ledge. The winds increased without warning as the trio glanced behind them. There was panicked chatter before the dogs barks eerily grew silent.

"Just a few more meters to go." She stole a look at Yuri. Distrust reflected in her eyes as she quickly looked away.

'I sure hope that Sveta knows what she's doing.'

The glow of the bedroom light was dim as Soap's stared blankly at the ceiling fan's blurry blades. He'd been sleeping for quite some time and felt immensely more rested than he had in months. Looking to the sides of the bed, he realized he was in a small room. The dark curtains shielded his view from the sun as his eyesight adjusted. Beside the window was a chair with some clothes on it. Thinking of clothes, he thought of the ones he was wearing. Or rather, why the sheets felt so close to his skin? Lifting the sheets, he was surprised to find himself in only his boxers. Pulling the blanket off, he shivered at the room's temperature. Sliding his feet to the side, he stood. Still sore, he stepped slowly as the first rush of blood passed painfully. He leaned over to grab his clothes on the chair and just slipped his pants on whenever he heard the door open.

"Oh, I am sorry." The young red head squeaked before turning away. "I didn't realize you were awake."

Soap didn't respond as he slid his shirt over his head. "It's no problem. It's not like I was naked or anything."

The comment caused Vaher to burn with crimson embarrassment as she quickly realized that he was beside her.

"This way, Captain MacTavish," She averted her gaze before walking awkwardly down the hallway. Soap smirked catching a glimpse at her reaction. "Captain Price and your men are in the living room."

The house was larger than what it appeared to be from the outside.

"So, what's your name, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Nadiya Vaher."

"How lovely."

Nadiya smiled at him before stopping at the top of the stairwell. Her eyes focused on something in the darkness behind them. He turned his head upon sensing someone behind him. His bright azures adjusted to the darkness as they soon met with hazel eyes staring intently.

"Where are you taking him?" Bullseye inquired in a language Soap still failed to understand.

"Downstairs. To Captain Price and the others." Vaher meekly replied.

Bullseye nodded before Vaher continued leading Soap down the stairs. As the house brightened, he could see her auburn hair was pulled back in a loose bun making the appearance of her green eyes vibrant. She led him through the swinging kitchen door. Upon entering the kitchen, his ears perked up at the sound of Price's…laughter coming from the next room. The living room was significantly brighter than the previous rooms as Soap took in the room. Price sat sipping something warm along with a woman with shoulder length blonde hair.

"It's good to see you're not dead son." He greeted warmly.

"I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve, old man." He smiled.

Price smiled as the woman beside him stood.

"Nadiya, ready some more tea for our guests." She spoke a language that neither Nikolai or Yuri understood. Price sat readily watching their expressions.

'So they really aren't speaking Russian…'

Nodding quickly, the young redhead entered the kitchen while quickly passing Soap; he noticed a small blush on her face as she breezed by.

Soap watched the scene occurring and upon feeling Price's glance at him, he directed his attention to the nearby wall uncomfortably.

'Since when does Price hit it off with the ladies?' He wondered.

Moments passed whenever Nadiya returned with a tray of steaming tea in hand. She started in the far corner with Bullseye, Nikolai and Yuri; followed by Price and Snow before arriving at the end of the couch to hand Soap his most recent cup of tea. Price stood after finishing his drink.

Standing in front of the fireplace, he exhibited a demeanor still new to Soap, Nikolai and Yuri. His shoulders, while still straight were less tense, his gaze was softer, and the bags under his eyes were less visible.

'What had she done to him?' Soap wondered curiously.

"Gents, we're faced with a dilemma. We've run out of resources of our own and the supplies are dwindling fast. With the passing of several of the SAS members, we're truly under the gun this time." Snow stood from her seat and soon joined him in front of the fireplace. "Snow, here has contact with the several members of the UNSF who work under Makarov. She will be our guide in and out of his locations." Snow nodded before addressing the rest of them.

Price admired her cool, collected confidence. No longer was she the naïve, soft spoken medical assistant who blushed at the sight of him.

"As you already know, Makarov has returned. His dastardly plans have already been implemented and have been enforced for years on Russia and the surrounding countries. While your actions to stop him in the past have most certainly hindered his progress; he has been given time to learn. Time to process and time to reevaluate his terroristic tactics."

"Undoubtedly we will need to lie low for the next several months. Makarov, most certainly knows someone has been killing off his men at an increasing rate and will tense up at any slightest blemish to his plan. Until then, there isn't much to do aside from catching up on your rest and ensuring that Makarov's death is your top priority."

She motioned to the two young ladies sitting in opposite corners of the room. "Bullseye and Vaher will serve as your guides for the duration of the mission…"

Price stood as Sveta walked over to him. Soap noticed him whispering something in her ear which made her giggle behind her hand.

Still a little unnerved by this prospect, Soap looked over to see Nadiya standing with a plate in her hand, offering to take Nikolai and Yuri's empty cups.

Taking this opportunity to avoid Sveta and Price, he walked over and placed his cup gently on the plate.

"Oops, it seems I missed one." She smiled before looking him in the eye before bashfully glancing away.

"Aye, almost." He smirked.

A moment of awkwardness ensued before Nadiya excused herself to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

Curiously watching her fade from his sight, he smiled to himself as she pressed her back against the door and blushed again before the turning away from his sight.

'Cute.' He thought before hearing Nikolai called for him.

Jogging up the stairs with renewed strength, he nodded. "Aye, what's up?"

"You up for a game of cards with Yuri and I?" He asked shuffling from hand to hand.

"Uh," He looked behind him in hopes of Nadiya to rebound the corner. When she didn't, he shrugged and agreed. "What are we playing?"

"Kings in a corner." Came the snarky reply from Yuri.

"You know I bloody well hate that game."

There was a brief moment of chuckling between the trio as they walked up the stairs and to Soap's room. Nikolai had already started bantering with Soap over his losing streak when Yuri felt someone overlooking his shoulder.

Bullseye cautiously closed the door behind in front of her as she watched him. In her gray eyes were looks of distrust that he couldn't naturally blame her for. The door was nearly latched when Nikolai began to call him into Soap's room.

"Alright, alright. I'm here." He said before stealing one last look into the gray eyes peering at the opposite end of the hall. The look was unshakeable as he felt it climb up his spine.

He breathed in relief upon entering the room and closing the door.

In her room, Bullseye sat at her window sill, staring aimlessly moon lit sky. There was a knock on the door and a pause before it opened to reveal Nadiya poking her head around.

"Kadri-"

"You should really learn to wait until someone answers you before you waltz into a room. I could have shot you."

Nadiya tensed at her harsh words, before proceeding into the room cautiously.

"I wanted to talk about those men and how one of them is-"

"Cute?"

"Well, he is quite handsome," She blushed and shrugged as Kadri reached for her dark unmarked bottle and stole a sip of it. "But I wanted to stress how nervous I am about going guiding someone into the field. I've never done that before."

"Sveta probably won't have you do much more than showing him around the arsenals and the scenery. Things to prevent him from…boredom." She smirked before swallowing another swig.

Nadiya cocked her head curiously before hearing laughter down the hall.

"Anyhow," Kadri caught Nadiya's attention by tossing a pillow at her face. "You ought to get to bed. It's quite late. And I'm sure MacTavish will be waiting to see you…" Kadri smirked at her crimson haired counterpart.

"I'm certain you're wrong." Nadiya pouted.

"We'll see." Kadri turned and aimed to turn off the lamp beside her, shrouding them in darkness.

Nadiya took a moment to crawl into the bed while watching Kadri slump into her makeshift bed at the window sill.

A.R.: Again, I am so sorry for not updating in forever. This semester has been atrocious and the further and further I am away from my precious writing, the more and more I crave it.