Deadliest Fiction Wiki

Battle 7 - John Price (2019) vs James Bond (Craig)

And now, in celebration of the release of No Time to Die - Daniel Craig's last outing as Bond - comes a series of mine in the making putting Bond through his paces. But not just the Bond we're familiar with in the 21st century, but the many incarnations of the legendary characters since his conception in the 1960s. Also think of this as part of an effort to help the battle-less warriors of DFederal get a new home. Anyhow, without further ado, let me present to you...

James Bond - the MI6 secret agent with a licence to kill and save the 21st century world from the machinations of SPECTRE

vs

Captain Jonathan Price - the SAS Captain who saved the 21st century world from WWIII by taking down a rogue Russian general

WHO... IS... DEADLIEST?

Let's Meet the Warriors[]

James Bond[]

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They say you're judged by the strength of your enemies.
— Daniel Craig as James Bond

Note: This is the version of James Bond as seen in the Daniel Craig movies 'Casino Royale' (2006) to 'SPECTRE' (2015), excluding 'No Time to Die' (2021) for reasons seen later in the blog. Future battles involving Craig Bond might take on board NTTD feats.

Commander James Bond, C.M.G., R.N. was a Senior Operational Officer of the 00 branch, an ultra-covert Black Ops unit within the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS or MI6). As an agent of the 00 branch, Bond holds code number "007".

As a teenager, Bond attended Fettes College where he won numerous athletic and martial arts competitions. During this time he also grew closer to his foster father Hannes Oberhauser, viewing him as a second father, though this bond was cut short as Hannes' biological son Franz, grew jealous and murdered him in what many thought to be a skiing accident. After graduating from Fettes at the age of 17, Bond began attending the Britannia Royal Naval College. While there, Bond excelled in all areas of training and joined the British Royal Navy.

During his time in the military, Bond served under different branches, such as the SBS, Naval Intelligence, 030 Special Forces Unit, all under distinction. During his tenure at the RNR DI Group, Bond attended specialized courses at Cambridge, Oxford and other institutions. Bond left the RNR DI Group after recruitment by MI6 at the age of 30.

After years of service (including missions to defeat the Quantum criminal organisation and apprehend former agent Raoul Silva), Bond eventually came to dismantle the worldwide criminal organisation SPECTRE that was responsible for all the trouble that pained him from Le Chiffre to Silva though this ran him into trouble with the legitimate arms of SPECTRE that infiltrated MI6. Travelling all over Europe and Africa following leads towards SPECTRE and Blofeld, Bond was able to stop Blofeld's plans and have him arrested by MI6 led by M.

Captain Price[]

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We get dirty and the world stays clean. That's the mission.
— Captain Price

Note: In case it isn't obvious, this is the version of Captain Price as seen in the Modern Warfare reboot from 2019 but before the War against Al-Qatala in 2020

Captain Jonathan Price is an officer of the 22nd SAS Regiment and the founder/leader of the joint multi-national special operations task force and counter-terrorism military unit known as Task 141.

Price joined the infantry at the age of sixteen and has served in the British Army for eighteen years. One of the youngest cadets to ever graduate the Royal Military Academy as a commissioned officer, he completed Special Service Commando selection and was 'badged' a member of the SAS, proving his worth on countless covert operations over multiple deployments in the Middle East (including a notable incident aiding the Urzikstan Liberation Force against a Russian chemical lab in 2009). Promoted to captain in 2011, call-sign 'Bravo Six', Price is the officer in charge of a highly effective unit, tasked with anti–hijacking counter–terrorism, specializing in close quarter combat, sniper techniques and hostage rescue. He is unofficially missioned to capture or kill high value targets.

In 2019, Price and his SAS team played an active role in assisting the CIA track down and kill key members of the terrorist group Al-Qatala. When chemical gas was stolen from Russia and deployed in London, Price and the Metropolitan Police Service (which included Price's to-be protege Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick) helped to contain the threats and apprehend the terror cell responsible. Acting upon intelligence gathered from the terror cell raid, Price and Gaz unsuccessfully led a rescue mission to save CIA officers from an Al-Qatala cell that retrieved their leader 'The Wolf' from their custody. Through a divide and conquer approach, Price and his SAS officers (with CIA and USMC assistance) were able to corner and capture 'The Wolf' but failed to capture his henchmen 'The Butcher' and Hadir Karim until he, with the help of old FSB comrade Nikolai, led two black ops missions into Russia and Georgia which resulted in their successful captures.

Ultimately, Price and his colleagues confronted Russian General Barkov at an assault on Barkov's chemical gas factory in Georgia. During the assault, Price and Garrick (as well as CIA officer Alex and Urzikstan Liberation Force leader Farah Karim) plant explosives on the premises and extricate themselves before the explosives are detonated. In the aftermath of the factory's destruction and Barkov's death at Farah's hands, Price is contacted by the CIA to inform him of the formation of a new Russian ultranationalist movement led by Victor Zakhaev, and is instructed to form his own network of agents to stop Zakhaev. This force would later become known as Task Force 141.

Weapons & Equipment[]

James Bond[]

Gerber Automatic Knife

Bond is given this knife by M at the climax of SPECTRE

The Gerber 06 Auto, made in the USA, is an automatic knife (also called ‘switchblades’ or ‘flick knives’) - where the blade is hidden inside the handle and shoots out when a button is pressed. In this case, an oversized button opens the blade via a torsion spring that keeps constant tension on the blade.

The overall length of the knife is 8.5" (21.6 cm) with a blade length of 3.8" (9.6 cm) and a weight of 6.30 oz (180 gram).

WaltherPPK
PPK-2-SPECTRE

James Bond's most trusty sidearm

The Walther PP (German: Polizeipistole, or police pistol) series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols, developed by the German arms manufacturer Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen. It features an exposed hammer, a traditional double-action trigger mechanism, a single-column magazine, and a fixed barrel that also acts as the guide rod for the recoil spring.

The Walther PPK is a smaller version of the PP with a shorter grip, barrel and frame, and reduced magazine capacity. The smaller size made it more concealable than the original PP and hence better suited to plain-clothes or undercover police work. It was chambered to hold a .32 ACP cartridge of 7 rounds, weighed about 590g, and had a muzzle velocity of 308m/s.

Hk ump9
UMP9-JamesBond

Carried by Bond during the end of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, most likely loaned to him by MI6

The UMP (Universale Maschinenpistole, German for "Universal Machine Pistol") is a submachine gun developed and manufactured by Heckler & Koch. Heckler & Koch developed the UMP as a lighter and cheaper successor to the MP5, though both remain in production. The UMP9 is a variation of the UMP chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum as opposed to the original's .45 ACP cartridge.

The UMP is a blowback-operated, magazine-fed submachine gun firing from a closed bolt. The closed bolt increases the weapon's accuracy, which is particularly desirable in a law enforcement context. However, the simple blowback design of the UMP makes it less controllable than the MP5. The UMP9 (the 9×19mm version of the UMP) is almost 0.2 kilograms (0.44 lb) lighter than the MP5, making the overall weight of the UMP-9 to be 2.5 kilograms (5.5 lb) compared to the 2.65 kilograms (5.8 lb) of the original UMP. The SMG variant has a cyclical rate of fire of 600-650 rounds/min, is effective to about 100m, and its curved banana-shaped magazine allows the gun to hold about 30 rounds.

1 original
AUG-Q-Branch

It can be inferred that the AUG A3 is part of the MI6 armoury and thus Bond can have access to it especially if it is placed in official MI6 safe houses

The Steyr AUG is an Austrian bullpup assault rifle chambered for the 5.56×45mm NATO intermediate cartridge, designed in the 1960s by Steyr-Daimler-Puch, and now manufactured by Steyr Mannlicher GmbH & Co KG. It is a selective-fire, bullpup weapon with a conventional gas-piston-operated action that fires from a closed bolt. Because of its design and make-up, it could be quickly configured as a rifle, a carbine, a sniper rifle, a sub-machine gun and even an open-bolt squad automatic weapon dependent on the user's need.

The Steyr AUG A3 is a variant of the gun that features a MIL-STD-1913 rail on top of the receiver and an external bolt release. But just like the regular AUG, it has a 30-round magazine, can fire at a rate of 680–750 rounds/min, can be fired effectively from 300m and a muzzle velocity of 970 m/s.

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Captain Price[]

Halligan-tool
Halligan-tool-2

Ignore the look of it hovering over Price's back. This tool is seen a lot of the time you see Price in the game.

A Halligan bar, also known as a Halligan tool, is a forcible entry tool used by firefighters and law enforcement. Price uses it as a defensive melee weapon once to kill an Al-Qatala insurgent.

Based on the earlier Kelly tool, the Halligan is a multipurpose tool for prying, twisting, punching, or striking. It consists of a claw (or fork), a blade (wedge or adze), and a tapered pick, which is especially useful in quickly breaching many types of locked doors. The Halligan is available in a number of lengths – typically 18–54 inches (46–137 cm) – and of various materials, including titanium, beryllium copper or stainless steel, though the common ones are 18 inches and made of titanium.

M19 Gunsmith MW2019

Although referred to as a M19 in the game and created by the in-game company of Corvus Defence, the pistol is actually the SIG Sauer P320, a modular semi-automatic pistol made by SIG Sauer, Inc. The gun is a further development of the SIG Sauer P250, utilizing a striker-fired mechanism in lieu of a double action only hammer system. Price's version of the gun given to him by Nikolai is mentioned as using .40 caliber hollow point bullets with a weight of 150 grains just as he likes it.

Presumably, M19 shares the same specs as the real P320 - with a muzzle velocity of 365 m/s, a semi-automatic rate of fire, a magazine size of 17 rounds, and a weight of about 800g.

Mp7

The MP7 is a German submachine gun manufactured by Heckler & Koch (H&K) and chambered for the HK 4.6×30mm cartridge The company designed the MP7 to penetrate soft Kevlar body armor while being small enough to be used in place of either a pistol or a submachine gun. The 4.6×30mm ammunition is exclusive to the gun and offers low recoil.

The weapon has a rate of fire of fire of 950 rpm, a muzzle velocity of 735 m/s and a range of 200 meters. The weapon comes with a 40-round magazine too.

Kilo 141 model MW

Just like the M19, the Kilo 141 is a fictional gun made by the in-game company Singuard Arms. In reality, the Kilo 141 is actually based on the Heckler & Koch HK433 which is a a modular assault rifle chambered for 5.56×45mm which combines features of the G36 and the HK416 families of assault rifles.

The HK433 has multiple barrel lengths ranging from 11-, 12.5-, 14.5-, 16.5-, 18.9- or 20-inch. All of the barrels are cold hammer forged, hard chrome lined with a 178 mm (1 in 7 inch) right-hand twist, six-groove rifling. It has an interchangeable barrel system and a folding adjustable buttstock with a three position cheek riser and a paddle-style magazine release. Side-folding the buttstock shortens the HK433 by 266 to 297 mm (10.5 to 11.7 in).

Spec-wise, the gun weighs about 3.5kg, has a rate of fire of 751rpm, a magazine size of 30 rounds and a muzzle velocity of about 950m/s. The custom Kilo 141 Price uses comes with the Singuard Arms Whisper barrel, Tac Laser, Integral Hybrid optic, and FSS Close Quarters Stock.

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X-Factors[]

James Bond[]

Bond's experiences as a soldier and spy are long and varied; and across all his education courses and armed forces services, he has received high distinctions from his peers thanks to their notice of his natural abilities, mental quickness and confidence. He served on several British ships as part of his naval intelligence career and trained with the Special Boat Service in their Advanced Commando Parachute and Underwater and Aquatic Warfare training programs. Following his excelling in those areas, he transferred to the 030 Special Forces Unit and earned certifications in the operation of all known military vehicles. During his three-year tenure with the 030 SFU, Bond rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander and saw covert service in Iraq, Somalia, Iran and Libya, as well as active service in Bosnia. After that tenure, Bond worked for the Defence Intelligence Group, where his abilities proved highly satisfactory, although his fellow officers noted Bond's rather casual attitude toward command structure and protocol. Bond's work provided vital intelligence during key moments with Libya, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Cyprus, Indonesia, China and North Korea.

At age 30, Bond was recruited to MI6, completing all orientation and MI6 Covert Operations training in eight weeks and receiving exceptionally high marks for physical endurance, logic, and Psychological Ops exercises before going into the field with assignments all over the world, from Jamaica to Lebanon, Cuba & the United States to Rome, Austria to the UAE. Bond soon became the youngest MI6 agent to be awarded the 007 status at age 38 following his discreet assassinations of a corrupt MI6 individual and his contact.

Following this, Bond's adventures became more and more embroiled with uncovering conspiracies, taking down smuggling operations and dealing with secret agents that are as clever and ruthless as he is. From Le Chiffre at the Casino Royale in Montenegro to his more recent adventures in Austria and Tangiers dealing with SPECTRE bases there, Bond has been able to put his physicality, his investigation and espionage skills, and his resourcefulness to good use.

Bond is at the peak of physical condition for a man his age who engages in an intense exercise regimen, he is tough and as accomplished as a commando. He is muscular and an impressive physical specimen. James engages in daily exercise, these including: swimming, diving, running and shooting. Bond could run for long times without tiring, while doing free running movements. He also had a large lung capacity, and since he could stay underwater for more than 1 minute. Bond has great reflexes and reaction time. Due to his physical topping, Bond has great physical strength (able to kill a man with one punch) and durability (dropped from great heights, was shot, stabbed and tortured, however rarely stopped fighting, or sketched pain). Bond showed remarkable ability to run free and can move quickly while evading various obstacles, and glide over narrow passages. He could make big jumps between rooftops and walls, and even jump on moving vehicles. He has extremely fast reflexes, being able to get an unloaded gun in the air, he throws it into Mollaka, while he was on a crane lifted several feet tall. Bond also has high tolerance to pain, when tortured by Le Chiffre, he was attacked several times in the testes, however despite the tremendous pain, he still made ​​fun of Le Chiffre.

Furthermore, Bond is a incredibly skilled martial artist able to contend with stronger and tougher opponents such as Mr Hinx, as well as other expert fighters (such as Mollaka) and assassins. James can effortlessly engage multiple opponents armed, unarmed otherwise and come out as the victor. For example, in Quantum of Solace, he was able to defeat several MI6 agents while handcuffed in an elevator, as well as brawl against Dominic Greene.

Put simply, Bond is a ruthless, morally ambiguous killer whose only clear virtues are patriotism and a sense of duty. By his own admission, killing does not bother him, and he is willing to manipulate and even harm innocent people if it furthers "the big picture" of his mission. He also has mixed feelings about his job; in four out of five of the films in which he has appeared, he has tried to quit or retire, only to be lured back when a new threat arises in the next film.

Captain Price[]

I understand that this will repeat some part of the bio above but it still is relevant as an insight into the training and experience Price had in being a top SAS officer.

Price joined the infantry at the age of sixteen and has served in the British Army for eighteen years. One of the youngest cadets to ever graduate the Royal Military Academy as a commissioned officer, he completed Special Service Commando selection and was 'badged' a member of the SAS, proving his worth on countless covert operations over multiple deployments in the Middle East. Promoted to captain in 2011, call-sign 'Bravo Six', Price is the officer in charge of a highly effective unit, tasked with anti–hijacking counter–terrorism, specializing in close quarter combat, sniper techniques and hostage rescue. He is unofficially missioned to capture or kill high value targets.

Whilst he was still a Lieutenant, Price was involved in an assassination attempt on Ultranationalist politician Imran Zakhaev under the command of then Captain MacMillan in Pripyat, Ukraine. The attempt was unsuccessful.

In 2009, now in command of unit Bravo, Lieutenant Price was informed of a Russian chemical lab in Urzikstan by a Commander "Karim" of the Urzikstan Liberation Force; acting on this, the SAS launched a raid on the facility, and Price helped assist Commander Farah Karim. Helping her up, the group saved a group of prisoners in the lab, including Karim's brother, Hadir. He then instructed both Farah and Hadir to set up camp in the mountains, away from the Russians and their commanding officer, General Roman Barkov.

In 2011, Price was promoted to the rank of Captain, and participated in countless missions that required him to stop terrorist, hostage rescues, and capture or kill high-valued targets. Around or before this time, Price met Kate Laswell, and had a close professional relationship with her, and works closely with Western intelligence agencies when dealing with high-valued targets. In addition, Price also knew Nikolai, and considered him an old comrade that he could rely on when he had to go outside the rules. Price also is owed a favor by Kamarov, after an unknown occurrence in Beirut, Lebanon. Before the events of the game, Captain Price worked alongside SAS operative Jacob Thorne, but the latter transferred due to "ethical disagreements".

In all seriousness though, there is little material that details Price's training and career in greater detail - presumably it is similar to that of the OG Modern Warfare Captain Price in that he has had to undergo years of tough SAS training in spec-ops warfare.

As for the current level of experience, it has been limited in scope and timeframe but the enemies he faced certainly were tough in their own right - from the Al-Qatalan terrorists to Barkov's rogue Russian soldiers; and most of these engagements saw the odds and numbers stacked against him.

Again with very little material to go with, the only reference to go on is what has been said about him: that with his service in the 22nd SAS Regiment, John Price has spent most of his career fighting in the shadows. He's been shot, captured, abandoned, blown up, locked up, tortured, and left for dead. Price is a veteran of military operations in nearly every conflict-prone corner of the world, distinguishing himself with acts of gallantry and intrepidity. His achievements have risen to the stuff of regimental history. This implies that Price is one tough SOB who is also resourceful in finding ways to get away and stay out of danger - even in the face of imprisonment and torture though this implies that Price is prone to getting overpowered at times; still he has a way of surviving the odds.

Despite his looks, Price is actually in his mid-30s indicating that he has used his physicality and skills very well in his duties as an SAS officer. Blessed with uncanny instincts and an unchecked determination, Captain Price is a peerless combat-tracker, known for excelling in a fluid and volatile environment. An elite seek-and-strike expert, Price is versed in a wide range of field craft and tactical capability. From airborne shock-trooper to long-range reconnaissance operator, Captain Price is a covert, jungle, desert and urban operator, sniper and saboteur.

A strike against Price's score/evaluation in physicality is his lack of physical feats performed on the field when in Urzikstan and Russia. While he was able to survive explosions and crashes plus he used the Halligan tool as a weapon effectively, his H2H game is a bit off to say the least. Whenever we see him get a bit close, he tries to use his gun while physically restraining his opponent. Theoretically he would use the Halligan tool if need be but otherwise his fisticuff technique is an 'on the fly' style to say the least. Not to say he doesn't have H2H training presumably since he would have been trained by the SAS in such techniques

Price believes that the duty of every soldier is to fight for the greater good— "The rules of engagement don't change, but their justification does." Price always fights for what's right but he knows what's right isn't always what you're fighting for. He's often said, "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter." Sometimes unpredictable and unrestrained, John Price has a golden rule all his own: "We get dirty, and the world stays clean."

Although an officer, Captain Price has always preferred to keep the company of an enlisted warfighter. John often tells new recruits: "All it takes to change the course of history... is the will of a single man or woman." Not above a rogue move or an unholy alliance in the name of getting the job done, John has a deep but often strained relationship with the system.

Much like Sergeant Kyle, Price seems to hate being tied down by rules or procedures, and sometimes takes drastic actions on his own, often against orders.

Now Onto the Battle[]

Scenario + Notes[]

  • Scenario: In an alternate timeline, SPECTRE succeeds in their mission to infiltrate/replace MI5 with C as it's head and the Nine Eyes mass surveillance program activated. Bond, having lost everyone he loves to Blofeld and C, goes on the run and is labelled a wanted and extreme fugitive. Price and his Task Force are tasked to hunt down and terminate Bond by whatever means necessary.
  • Setting: Near a MI6 double-storey safe house in some woodland area (country doesn't matter really) - the safe house will also have a secret bunker area underneath.
  • You might be wondering why I didn't give Bond any gadgets. There's a reason why the Aston Martin DB5 isn't available - it's still in Q's workshop in pieces but now given the scenario it will remain in pieces. The Omega Seamaster watch is destroyed in Tangiers and given the situation, he cannot go and get another one. The DB10 is destroyed of course. And I doubt Bond's Sony Ericsson phone would help here - he's probably destroyed it to stop him being tracked easily.
  • Price wins by either overpowering/incapacitating Bond or killing him; since Bond is going to believe Price is a loyal soldier who will not be easy to talk to, he's more than likely going to kill Price and thus he wins if he is able to do this.
  • Voting is open for the next couple of weeks, ending on November 18th.

Battle[]

Captain Price breathed slowly and heavily as he traipsed as slowly as he could through the dense shrubbery. His Task Force was slowly coming up the rear, their rifles drawn as they all closed in on the target. Price then talked on the intercom to his air support.

"Do we a visual on the safehouse, Kate?"

Kate responded from her CIA station "We've got it on satellite feed, Price. No sign of Bond. Don't even have a heat signature..."

"Copy that" Price said as he drew more heavy breaths. He thought back to his meeting with the head of the Nine Eyes Alliance, codenamed C, just several hours prior at his Shard CNS office. Ever since that night, something felt a bit... off but for the first time in a long while, he didn't seem to know what it was.

Yesterday Evening...

Price entered into the office donned with his usual formal attire of combat jeans, shirt and combat hat. However this combat gear stood in stark contrast to the almost pristine technical layout, and to C's more technical and slick business attire. As Price saluted the man, C crossed his hands in front of his mouth and looked up. Composing himself, C said "At ease, Captain Price" and gestured to the chair in front of the desk "Would you care for a seat Captain? Perhaps a cup of tea?"

Price lowered his face to look at the nerd, and easing himself a little he said "I prefer standing and keeping boots on the ground, sir". As C stood up from his chair, briefing in hand, and walked to the other side of the desk, Price continued with his quip "And at this time, I prefer a proper pint".

C nodded his head courteously noting indeed the stark difference in nature between the two of them. "Very well. I suppose I ought to give you this then" C handed Price the folder containing the brief for the mission. Cleverly constructed by SPECTRE and Blofeld of course.

Price opened up the folder to find the mission details as well as pictures of Bond in action both in Britain and abroad. There was also a paper list of safehouses on the European continent that were dutifully crossed out in accordance with intelligence.

"I'm sure you know of our precarious situation with the man known as James Bond..." C said as he walked back towards his chair only to stand close to his desk lamp. "Ever since the 00 program was shut down by the Prime Minister, Bond has gone off the grid... and I have every reason to believe he has lost his mind too. You've seen the news recently. Police officers and military personnel murdered, attempted assassinations... Bond has become a very dangerous man."

Price read through the forged personnel file and stared at it intently. "With all due respect, sir... that's the kind of man you're going to get when you give him a licence to kill"

C stared at Bond menacingly but kept his cool "It takes a licenced killer to know one. That is why Task Force 141 was recommended to me for this hunt. Our intelligence counterparts in the mainland have tracked him down to where we think he is hiding."

Price closed the folder and placed it back on the desk. He thought about the next words to say, and what his forthcoming plan of action is. In the span of a few seconds, he's just figured out what to do to ensure that the right job gets done. And in that time he thought back to the personnel file, the evidence pointing to Bond's location and the general demeanour of the office. Eyes quickly darting around before coming back to C's own face, Price said "Alright. 141 will take the mission"

C smiled and looked back on his computer for a while before turning to Price "Good. There'll be a plane taking you and your men to Hamburg tomorrow, scheduled to depart at 1000 hours. I suggest you and your men are briefed and prepared"

"Thank you sir" Price said before saluting and exiting the room, hiding his disdain for what he sees is possibly someone who has just painted one of the most honourable men in the world as a threat.

Present...

Price and Gaz walked towards the thinning line of trees, entering into a clearing where the safehouse was. The team pointed their guns around the place as they moved faster towards the place. Price signalled to Soap and Ghost that they are to wait outside and provide sentry in case Bond is not inside the house. Meanwhile, Gaz and Price ascended up the stairs and stood by the door. Noticing that it was ajar, Price carefully opened it up and headed inside.

The interior of the house looked like a very quaint setting albeit with some evidence to suggest that someone was recently inside. Price pointed his rifle into every room, and so did Gaz - despite the evidence, the rooms were said to be "Clear". Gaz said to Price "I'll see if he's in the upstairs rooms, sir." Price nodded, following Gaz's lead from behind but keeping his eyes alert and pointed behind him.

Upstairs however presented the team with the same situation - every room was disturbed but no-one was present. The rooms were just... quiet. At this point, Gaz suggested to Price that they call it in and the MI6 lead was a bust. Price wasn't so sure about it though. He told Gaz that he has a gut feeling that Bond is going to strike soon.

"How can you tell sir?" the protege asked with concern. Price stared out the window and quipped back his rhetorical response "How else do you think he got his 00 badge?"

Price was right. Bond's stealth and ability to strike suddenly was one of his key traits... as Ghost and Soap would find out so painfully. For Bond was hiding in a small space between the safehouse bunker and the raised foundation. He spied carefully as the two sentries strolled around the premise as they covered more ground. He held his breath as he saw Soap and Ghost started to get further and further away from each other until Ghost neared the blindspot by the garage.

Ghost checked around the structure, tapping on the walls and keeping his eyes peeled - Bond could see that he was looking out towards the driveway and road before turning back to garage. Seizing the opportunity when Ghost's back was turned, Bond slid out from his hiding spot and grabbed the soldier from behind, holding him in a sleeper hold. The soldier struggled to reach for his helmet to tap into the intercom but Bond applied enough force on his throat that eventually caused him to collapse. Unconscious but alive... for now at least. Sensing Soap about to head towards Ghost's position, Bond grabbed Ghost's intercom and tossed it out behind the garage.

"Soap. Any activity on the perimeter?" Price asked through the intercom. Soap radioed back "Negative sir. We got no visual from the forest. Ghost and I-" Soap paused when he noticed Ghost had gone missing. Price noticed something was wrong "Soap, what happened to Ghost?"

"What happened to Ghost sir?" Gaz asked as he and Price stood atop the stairs. Price furrowed his brow and walked down the stairs, Gaz tailing behind him.

Soap managed to turn the corner and spot the unusual hole on the trellis. He also spotted Ghost's intercom bud just there on the floor. No sign of the body. As Soap got closer to the bud, he was just about to call in to Price but Bond leaps out from behind and holds Soap in a choke hold, applying as much pressure as he did with Ghost. Soap struggled with all his might and even though Soap tried his best to stamp on Bond's feet, Bond was able to quietly avoid the footwork and pressed harder until Soap too collapsed uncocnscious.

As Bond dragged Soap's body into the bunker, he heard Price and Gaz hop out of the house and call for their missing companions. Price then asked Kate on the phone if Bond was picked up on their satellite imagery.

Kate checked the satellite footage and says that Bond must've been very good at his steath work because "Bond somehow wasn't picked up by our satellites. Even thermal imaging didn't pick him up... but we did see Soap's and Ghost's disappear. Our team here thought it was a glitch..."

Price was furious and was about to yell at Kate for this blunder but as soon as he reached the alley between the garage and house that Soap and Ghost traipsed through, Bond suddenly peeked out from behind the garage with his Steyr and started spraying bullets in their vicinity. Gaz and Price fired their rifles back but Bond was able to hide behind the wall. Gaz was signalled by Price to go round the back and trap bond that way.

Bond, however, was able to anticipate this and rushed straight towards Gaz's side. With a single jump, Bond slammed the butt of his rifle in Gaz's face, knocking Gaz out cold. Gracefully turning around as soon as he finished his slam, he turned to see Price aim his rifle straight down his way. Thinking quickly, Bond let off a few more warning shots in Price's way, forcing him to take cover behind the garage wall.

As Price took cover and fired back, he noticed the hole in the trellis and deduced that it could lead to an area underneath the house. Bond made his way towards Price's position while continuing to fire off more shots. Steadying himself, Price waited until Bond was real close before he could slam his gun against Bond's Steyr and try to push the spy aside.

Bond regained his footing however and ran towards Price with a body slam of his own. As Price lay on the ground coughing in pain, Bond ran under his secret exit/entrance. As soon as Price was able to get onto his feet, Kate radioed in on the intercom.

"Come in, Bravo Six. What's your status?"

Price coughed a bit as he brought Kate up to speed "My team's down. I'm in pursuit of the target but he's gone underground. Comms will not be functional. Over"

"Copy that, Price. Just get the job done by all means necessary. A team will be on your way to collect your squad. Over"

Price looked down the long concrete tunnel with flickering lights. Realising he might deal with close quarters, Price set down his Kilo before getting his backpack down too. Inside the pack were his MP7 PDW and the trusty M13. After holstering the pistol on his belt and slinging the Kilo on his back, Price made his way into the tunnel. He was sweating and his walking was a bit heavy owing to that physical altercation but he knew he had to get his mission done.

Coming to another slightly ajar metal door, Price stuck the barrel of his gun through and had a peek, seeing another concrete hallway going down towards what could be the main foyer-like area. Price continued to carefully peer through the optics and walk slowly but surely, making sure that he didn't make any sound. As soon as Price reached the foyer-like area, decorated with equally fancy furnishings as the upstairs room, he scanned the area hoping that Bond would not leap out of thin air.

Bond meanwhile hugged his UMP in his arms as he remained crouched behind another wall, trying to get a sense on where his opponent was going to be. Peering round the corner, he finds Price's back turned towards him. Killer instinct running wild in his head, now knowing that this man - whoever he was - was sent to hunt him down, Bond dropped his gun slowly onto the floor and unsheathed his knife.

Slinking behind the captain, Bond hoped he could either disable or subdue the man... but to his surprise, Price turned around and elbowed him in the jaw. With such force too. Bond was slammed against the wall but his grip on the knife tightened and when John tried to aim and shoot his MP7 at Bond, Bond swept his arms upward, causing the gun to fire up towards the ceiling and the lights. Awkwardly positioning his wrist, Bond was able to get at least one stab attempt at Price on his midriff penetrating the body armour he had on but only getting a small distance into the skin. Still, Price winced in pain some more when Bond stamped on his foot causing him to collapse on his side.

This was the 2nd time that Bond has managed to outplay him physically, and Price was starting to convince himself that C was right and Bond really did lose his senses. As far as he knew, Bond was going to kill him then and there. Unless...

Mustering up the strength he had, Price reached for his M13 in his holster and as soon as Bond appeared again towards him, UMP in hand, Price took aim... but not at Bond's heart but rather his hand containing the UMP. "Look mate, I don't want to kill you." he said as he took aim, but Bond simply stared him down. In that split second before Bond lowered his weapon, Price fired. Because of his hazy mind, Price's bullet only got the barrel of the gun... but it was, to Price, a lucky shot since the damaged barrel pissed off Bond. Before Bond could toss his PDW aside, Price fired off another shot but missed Bond's hand by about several inches. Enraged, Bond withdrew his own pistol and fired it at Price's chest. Again, like it did with the knife, the body armour managed to slow down the bullet before it could do serious damage... but it was dangerously close to the lung. To Bond however, this was enough to disable the opponent.

Keeping his gun aimed at Price, Bond went up to him and kept the Walther pressed against the temple. Looking at Price straight in the eye, Bond asked "Funny way of showing that. Now who are you?"

Price felt very weak after that near fatal shot but with enough strength and willpower coursing through his veins, he was able to utter some words that surprised Bond: "I... can... help... you..."

Bond, trusting that this wasn't a trap, holstered his pistol away and strained to carry Price over his shoulder. Price could see that he was being taken away by his so-called target up the stairs from the bunker room but due to his injuries, he was fading in and out of consciousness. Then it went black for Price.

An hour or so later...

Price was jolted awake by a slap on the face. Fading into consciousness, Price started to make out the face of Bond, sitting in front of him. He looked around and saw that his shirt, his body armour, his intercom and his guns were gone. Instead, he had a bandage wrapped around his torso, a bloodstain where he was shot slowly continuing to form. He also noticed his hands are tied. Price struggled to break free, but Bond decided to set him at ease.

"Don't worry, you'll be let out of your chains soon enough..." Bond mused as he sat back and sighed, crossing his arms. "You're British special forces, right?"

"Captain Jonathan Price, 22nd SAS Regiment" Price said, noting that Bond was sounding a bit more... calmer than expected. Then again, Price was thinking that Bond could be easily talked to given the circumstances.

"Regiment scouts..." Bond mused aloud before taking up his glass of brandy and sipping it. "I take it then that your visit here was not one for a scouting trip"

Price chuckled "Well... backwater countryside isn't the expected place for a canoeist to hang out, aight?"

Bond chuckled right back as he downed another gulp of drink. Putting the glass down, he then picked up his Walther and let his hand dangle by the leg. "You said you could help me. How can I trust that you will do that?" Bond asked.

Price smirked "Well... trust is one of those things that needs to be earned, innit? Maybe this is a trap after all. But I know about you, Bond. More than that pesky dictator C"

Bond leaned forward, fist still wrapped around the handle and finger on the trigger "But wasn't it C who sent you here to kill me?"

Bond himself shuffled his chair forward as he continued to stare into Bond's eyes "C sent me on a mission to either kill you or bring you home. I'm definitely bringing you home."

Bond reciprocated his prisoner's cold stare "And C would like it if you brought me back in a bodybag"

Price's expression relaxed "C has got you all wrong, mate. I know you're trying to fight for what's right" Price repositioned himself to be upright "And I want to help you. But you need to talk to me and my team"

Bond seemed to be interested in Price's offer for an alliance and looked down on the floor and his gun in his hand for a while as he processed the information.

Relenting, Bond set the Walther aside and got up to untie Price. It was something about Price that made him want to trust him but there was also that feeling that untying him could be a big mistake. Lucky the weapons and the men are taken to a place further away than the kitchen.

After untying Price, Bond stood up and walked over to the table. Leaning on it and turning around, Price asks "What is C's endgame here? If he's targetting you and making you out to be a terrorist, then you've done something to scare him"

Bond walked over to the desk and poured both himself and Price a small sliver of whisky into the two tumblers besides Price. Price picked up his glass and swigged down the load. Bond downed his portion and looked out the window, sensing that Price's reinforcements will arrive shortly.

"One word. Spectre." Bond said before going over to offer Price his combat gear back. "We don't have much time. I need you to kill me."

Price smugly chuckled as he undid the bandage around his waist. He knew what Bond was planning. He was just figuring out how to explain to his superiors - including Kate - exactly what happened. "Thought we'd get to know each other a bit..."

Bond went to the secret door passage underneath the stairwell and Price finished loading himself up. 'This better work...' he thought as he looked out the door towards the hills and over the horizon.

Later that evening...

C looked very pleased with himself. The plan had worked. He could now report to Blofeld that Bond was no longer a problem for them. He eyed the pictures for a while showing Bond lying on the floor covered in blood, his Walther next to him looking like the magazine was empty.

"You've done well, Captain" C put the pictures down on the desk. He bent forward a bit to look at Price's stoic face.

"All part of the job, sir" Price simply said before being told to stand at ease. Price then looked down at the desk jockey and waited for him to say "Is there anything else, Captain?"

Price said "I spoke to my contacts in the CIA about the information you provided me with at the start. How you used your best intelligence analysts to find the safehouse where Bond was staying"

C looked back down and continued to write on his documents "What did they tell you?"

Price sighed "They expressed concern about how you acquired the information so quickly. Even Kate and her superiors were surprised at how you were able to narrow down Bond's trail"

C looked back up at Price and calmly suggested "The Nine Eyes Alliance have their ways. But that's above your clearance level, Captain."

Price decided now was the time to let it out "Do those ways include hacking into people's private phone numbers without reason? Or looking through city security cameras without going through a back channel?"

C put his equipment down and glared at Price "Did Kate tell you all this?"

Price scoffed at the idea "Kate? She's a good friend but she does have her loyalty with the CIA"

C was not convinced "The Americans like to play dirty, don't they? We offer a hand of friendship and they shake it while crossing their fingers behind their back"

He stood up from his position and continued to stare menacingly at Price "This Alliance is perhaps the best thing to happen in this century. With our network of agencies, we will be able to prevent terrorists from harming innocent civilians and blowing up our cities"

This sentence struck a chord with Price, remembering what Gaz said after the Piccadilly Circus incident. However to Price, what he and the Met had was credible actionable intelligence. Intelligence that was acted upon too late, admittedly. But this Nine Eyes program...

"Even if it means overstepping personal boundaries?"

C retorted "Don't pretend that you and the CIA do these kinds of things too. After all, I know you don't like red tape, Price"

Price snarled back "I might not like red tape, sir. But what you and the Nine Eyes program doing is a far worse evil than that. From what I hear from Kate... you're treating everyone as hostile."

C then let his true self out the moment that Price poked his finger at his chest. "Because everyone is, Captain. Society and democracy are but a mask. The truth is... there needs to be something firm in place to keep the peace. Without Nine Eyes, chaos reigns because silly national pen-pushers and nerdy analysts take too long to piece the puzzle together."

Price glared at C, a frown and furrowed brow on his face. He tried to clench his hand into a fist... but then he remembered the plan.

"Will that be all, Captain?" C asked, smugly assuming victory.

Price drew another heavy breath before saying "All that intelligence gathering and yet... I don't think you know me that well"

As Price turned around to leave, he cocked his head to the side, pretending to take off his hat.

But what really was happening before C's eyes astonished him. Appearing in front of the glass door to the room was Bond aiming his Walther directly at him.

And at the sound of Bond firing his gun, Price ducked down and shielded himself from the glass shards raining on him. When the shots died down, Price looked up and saw Bond standing next to him. C's body was laid out on the desk, 3 bullet holes on his chest.

Price stood up and complimented Bond on his work. Holstering the gun away, Bond then patted Price on the shoulder and left the room saying "We've got work to do"

Price stood up and followed Bond out of the room, pausing to look back at C's corpse for a moment.

'Looks like the new mission begins...' he mused to himself before straightening his hat and walking away.

Winner: James Bond

Expert's Opinion[]

This was a close match with voters noting that Price packed the superior guns while Bond was the physically superior fighter (given that there was limited info on Price's own physical skils). Although Reboot Price is no slouch as a spec-ops warrior, he ultimately proved to be no match for Bond who was more experienced especially having fought foes that were borderline superhuman or just as trained in spec-ops as Price.

If you feel like this battle is unfair in anyway, shape or form, you can go ahead and do a rematch.