06/04/2025
The Long Watch
The desert stretched endlessly, a wasteland of dust and rock. Between Basra and the Iranian frontier, two Ghost Fang scout-snipers and their robotic dog approached a forgotten outpost.
Lieutenant Sam “Gunner” Rourke and Ari “Hawk” Tanaka moved with practiced ease, wrapped in shemaghs, their old U.S. desert camo BDUs blending into the dust. Their M8 rifles hung low, fingers near the trigger wells. Deacon, their robotic dog, carried all their supplies—rations, ammo, extra weapons, and a comms unit.
The outpost was barely functional—a sagging tent beneath a rusted satellite antenna, with a makeshift wooden fence on two sides. Barrels of water, oil, and lubricant lined the entrance, along with a pile of tires meant for desert buggies.
A man leaned against one of the barrels, wearing a faded Apex Defense vest and a sun-beaten cowboy hat. In his hands was a notebook, not a weapon.
“You Ghost Fang?” he asked, looking up lazily.
Rourke nodded. “Contract says we can resupply.”
The man, Elias Reed, smirked. “Help yourselves inside. Got comms gear under the tent, too.”
Hawk adjusted her shemagh. “We won’t transmit unless necessary.”
“What’s the job?” Reed asked.
Rourke took a sip from his canteen. “Recon at a refinery near the border. Apex is interested. Local militia might be moving in. HQ wants intel on them.”
Reed chuckled. “Same $h1t, different day.”
Rourke had been a Marine Sniper, fighting in the Middle East, then contracting in Africa and Asia. Hawk was ex-JSDF special forces who went off-grid after Japan banned private military work. Reed had fought in Fallujah before becoming a merc, working wherever the pay was good.
No flags, no loyalty—just another mission.
Rourke tapped Deacon. The robotic dog’s optics flared red—no threats, just the endless desert. The long watch continued.
📌 This is part of the Blackcell storyline ◾️
📌 Minifigures will be available in April's products drop in our online store