Half an hour later, SSO Squad's temporary camp.
In the open space, only a few ergency lamps with red filters cast faint halos, barely outlining the silhouettes of so colossal vehicles—
These were heavily modified "Typhoon"-K 4x4 Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles, with thick modular composite armor added to the body, narrow windows covered with bomb-proof sh, and a large Kord-12.7mm heavy machine gun barrel on the roof weapon station glinting with a cold sheen under the dim red light.
Petrovsky's nine-mber squad stood silently like ghosts in the night, fully equipped and standing by the vehicles.
They wore standard Multicam desert camouflage combat uniforms, but upon close inspection, their equipnt was vastly different from that of traditional Russian Army Special Forces.
Unlike the Russian Army's commonly equipped AK-12 or AK-74M, the squad's main weapons were all replaced with Czech-made V-AR rifles.
This rifle, based on the AR-15 platform, had two notable features: the right side of the upper receiver lacked an assist lock, and the ejection port did not have a conventional dust cover.
These V-AR rifles were clearly highly customized versions.
Each rifle's upper receiver was equipped with a combination of EOTech XPS series holographic sight and G33 magnifier, allowing rapid switching between close-quarters quick aiming and mid-range precise shooting.
On the handguard was a Russia-made Zenitco Perst-3 laser designator for precise shooting under night vision conditions.
Beneath the handguard was a SureFire tactical light and a vertical foregrip integrated together.
Additionally, MAGPUL's MBUS folding iron sights served as backup sights, and MAGPUL's PMAG polyr magazines were inserted into the rifle.
The team mbers wore a combination of Peltor ComTac noise-reducing headphones and Russian-made imitation Fast helts.
In addition to the main V-AR rifles, the squad's armory also included custom silencer-equipped VSS "Vintorez" suppressed sniper rifles, PKP "Pecheneg" general-purpose machine guns for suppressive fire, and weapons like the RPG-26 light rocket launcher.
Everyone's tactical vests and backpacks were packed tight, clearly prepared for prolonged field operations and intense firefights.
The SSO Squad needed to engage or confront Western Special Forces possibly equipped with Western gear, so choosing V-AR rifles, which shared operation principles with the M4 carbine, might be partly due to weapon compatibility considerations.
This was a very wise choice.
When Song Heping and Hunter appeared at the edge of the light, all SSO team mbers' gazes instantly converged. It was a look mixed with extre professionalism, curiosity, and a top professional soldier's natural vigilance toward "outsiders."
Major Petrovsky stepped forward, first nodding solemnly at Hunter, then turning to Song Heping, speaking quickly and clearly as he began introducing his team mbers. Pointing to each, the person would nod slightly or greet briefly:
"Deputy Commander and Chief Sniper, Dmitry Sokolov, codenad 'Cold Blade'."
He pointed to a tall, lean soldier holding a SVDS sniper rifle equipped with a white light/thermal fusion scope.
Seeing the captain introduce him, he coldly nodded at Song Heping, but his gaze fell on Hunter.
The sniper's instinct told him this was a fellow marksman.
Major Petrovsky continued, pointing to a soldier who appeared sowhat thin and was quickly tapping a rugged military tablet.
"Communications and Electronic Warfare Specialist, Yegor Lebedev, 'Signal.'"
"And him, Explosives and Breaching Expert, Maxim Kuznetsov, 'Thunder God.'"
That was a burly soldier like a brown bear, with various types of C4 plastic explosives, detonators, and fuses hanging from his tactical vest. He patted the battering charges at his waist, showing Song Heping a wild smile.
"Combat dic, Ivan Romanov, 'Angel.'"
A soldier with a gentle expression, bending to organize supplies by the vehicle, cast a friendly glance at Song Heping.
"Primary Gunner, Artur Volkov, 'Iron Hamr.'"
"Vanguard Assault, Sergei Morozov, 'Frost.'"
"Second Assault, Nikolai Yefimov, 'Shadow.'"
"And the Recon and UAV Operator, Aleksey Savelyev, 'Hawkeye.'
After introductions, Petrovsky pointed to a long table filled with weapons nearby: "Here is so spare Russian equipnt, you have ten minutes to choose or replenish. Main ammunition and special gear are on the vehicles."
Song Heping calmly walked to the weapon rack.
Taking a look, he was sowhat pleasantly surprised.
Apart from Russian-made weapons, there were even NATO weapons available.
It seed the Russian military had invested quite a bit in this newly ford Special Forces unit.
He ignored the brand new AK-12s and took out a well-maintained HK416 A5 rifle from the heavy weapons box.
This rifle had been deeply customized, with a Geissele SMR handguard equipped with a DBAL laser designator and a pressure switch-controlled tactical light. The upper receiver was fitted with a Vortex Razor HD Gen III 1-10x24mm low-powered variable optic (LPVO), with an additional 45-degree offset micro red dot sight as a backup.
He skillfully pulled the charging handle, checked the chamber, and installed his usual quick-detach silencer, his movents fluid, precise, with no extra action.
His sidearm was a Glock 19M pistol equipped with a micro red dot sight and suppressor.
He then filled his tactical vest magazine pouches with eight 30-round magazines and several hand grenades.
Hunter's choices precisely reflected his background and habits as an experienced sniper.
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