Counterterrorism in America

Inside the Skyscraper

"Hurry, move it! Those behind, keep up!"

The sound of urgent footsteps echoed in the hallway, accompanied by frantic shouts urging people forward. Owen crouched quietly in a corner, listening intently. Once the commotion passed and the outside returned to silence, he cautiously pushed the door open.

Covered in dust and dirt, he crawled out from a cramped space between the building's maintenance ducts. The past few hours had been a game of hide-and-seek with the heavily armed robbers. Their movements had become increasingly frequent—likely in response to the police assault—but Owen had managed to avoid detection so far.

Now alone, Owen felt a bit disoriented. When he had been with McClane, the New York cop had taken the lead on decisions. Now that they were separated, Owen wasn't sure what to do next. He figured McClane might eventually come looking for him, so he decided to head upwards, hoping to regroup.

He soon found an empty elevator shaft, pried the doors open with a tool, and climbed inside. Owen knew the risks of moving through the building's floors but remembered how he and McClane had previously used the elevator shafts as a safer alternative. He reasoned that McClane might have thought the same and hoped their paths would cross here.

Outside the Building

Chief Wayne Havel was furious, barking at a junior officer who stood stiffly under his wrath. "The media wants an interview now? Are they out of their damn minds? I've just lost two entire squads of elite officers, and they think I want to entertain reporters?"

The officer stammered an apology and quickly retreated after Havel waved him off. The chief's real source of frustration wasn't the media, though—it was the failed assault.

He had watched the whole thing unfold in the live broadcast. Fortunately, none of the footage revealed his earlier conversation with Owen. Still, the disaster was plain for all to see. By the time Owen had warned him about the surface-to-air missiles, the helicopters were already in the air, and it was too late to stop the operation.

"Damn it," Havel muttered. "How the hell do bank robbers get their hands on military-grade equipment? What's next? Robbers with nukes?"

The losses had been catastrophic. Two helicopters and their entire teams were obliterated by two missiles. On the ground, things had gone just as badly. The SWAT team was ambushed as soon as they entered the building, falling victim to pre-installed explosives.

The tactical cameras worn by the officers had captured horrifying footage: explosions ripping through the team, followed by cold, methodical execution shots as the robbers moved in to finish off the wounded. Not a single member of the 12-man squad had survived.

For Havel, this wasn't a robbery anymore—it was a war.

Now, the media had gone into a frenzy, tearing into him for his perceived incompetence. Havel clenched his fists, grinding his teeth. "Damn media vultures... all they ever do is bark without knowing anything."

As he seethed, his assistant approached hurriedly.

"Chief, we've got information!" the assistant reported, handing over a document.

"Finally. What do you have on the robbers?" Havel asked impatiently.

"McClane's identity has been verified—he's a New York police officer," the assistant began, but Havel waved him off.

"Skip the obvious and get to the point!"

"Yes, sir!" The assistant straightened up and continued. "The leader of the group is Hans Kruger, a known member of the West German Liberation Front. The organization is a relatively new terrorist group that has carried out several high-profile attacks in Germany, including the Berlin train station bombing earlier this year.

However, there's something strange—this group has never operated outside of Germany before. Also, Kruger was recently expelled from the organization, according to intelligence reports. CTU also confirmed that Kruger has no known ties to the Red Line terrorist group or their leader, Sarah."

Havel frowned deeply. So the demand for releasing Red Line terrorists was just a diversion. Their true target must be the vault.

Just then, he noticed two men in tactical gear being escorted toward him by a uniformed officer.

"Chief Havel," the officer announced, "these two are from CTU. They're here to meet the person in charge."

Havel stiffened slightly. CTU? That meant trouble. He forced a polite expression and addressed the newcomers. "Gentlemen, I'm Wayne Havel, the officer in charge of this operation. What can I do for you?"

"You can step aside," one of the men said bluntly, flashing his credentials. "I'm Jack Bauer from CTU. As of now, we are assuming command of this operation."

Havel's initial shock quickly gave way to indignation. He was about to protest but stopped himself. It was no secret that CTU—Counter Terrorism Unit—had full authority over any operation involving terrorism. Established only a few years ago, the agency had quickly become a powerful force in domestic counter-terrorism, operating independently from the CIA.

This wasn't just about protocol. If CTU was taking over, it also meant they would bear responsibility for any further failures. Havel found a small measure of comfort in that thought.

"Understood," Havel said after a pause. He quickly briefed Bauer on the situation:

"The building was taken over about thirty minutes ago. The hostages are being held on the 46th floor, though we don't have an exact count yet. We've attempted two assaults so far, but both ended in disaster. We lost two helicopters and two entire teams. The enemy is heavily armed, including surface-to-air missiles, and they show clear signs of military training."

Bauer nodded gravely. "Go on."

"We do have two officers inside the building," Havel continued. "You may have seen one of them in the live broadcast earlier. One is a New York cop named John McClane—his identity has been confirmed. The other is one of my detectives, Steve Owen. Additionally, we've positioned a sniper team in the building across from the skyscraper."

Bauer absorbed the information silently. He had a reputation for being relentless and highly tactical. Though Havel suspected Bauer didn't care much about the political fallout, the CTU agent would undoubtedly be a formidable ally—or rival—in this fight.

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