Caught between a rock and a hard place, that phrase had true meaning now. If he stepped out into the open and killed the man serving as an obstacle then he risked detection and alarming the entire compound. But if he stayed then he would be discovered regardless. Since his options were to either take a chance and fail, or do nothing and fail regardless, he chose the more primal option and pulled a knife free. It was perhaps equally as painful to watch as it was for him to pull off, but he lunged out into the open and tackled the guard unsuccessfully. He had surely thrown him off balance, but he still reached for his radio and was successful. A punch to the throat ensured a lack of any coherent message. But the other guard was edging closer to the site of the struggle. He had thirty seconds, of which twenty had been spent on this attempt. Five more went towards dismantling the guard's jugular and five more to get through the door.
— Through.
Just as he said that the second guard passed by the former scene of the struggle, taking note of the empty post where someone should have been stationed. The guard assumed it was negligence and held his position to report it over the radio, asking for his commander to verify where the missing guard was. The time spent growing more suspicious and aware that the compound was infiltrated was time that Gabriel used to not only find the network hub but start compromising it.
— Working now.
Gabriel's smooth work in getting this far had only been partially successful. The guard from outside eventually noticed the signs of the struggle, namely the blood and called it in. Which in turn prompted the guards to begin mobilizing in force just outside their barracks. Apparently they even had heavy armour. Zoe would notice the other guard entering the main building and reported it to Gabriel and it was likely she also noticed the concentration of guards that were just about ready to close on Gabriel's position.
