Short+story+-+Harrison+and+Felix

Act 1: No resistance 1500 hours “Ready up”. Ammo packs, check. UMP-45 recon class, check. FFP helmet and BP body armour, check. Extra 20 round reserve ammo pack, just in case, check. “Okay team, we’re Oscar-mike to objective Echo,” Captain Keyes, an ex-LAPD, asserted with confidence and authority. He was a tank of a man, easily taller than 190cm, with broad shoulders and defined muscles, he looked like he could take on a bear and win. His hair was light brown, slightly blonde from the sun, with old-school aviator sunglasses covering where his eyes should be. His lower face looked like it had not seen a razor for some days. Even with all the brawn, Keyes had most of the brains as well. He placed first in his military commander training, concentrating on field tactics and military battle strategies. He could have easily become a desk man, but, like his departed father, he wanted to fight on the front lines, placing equal first in his advanced field training as well. “Our taskforce is spread pretty thinly, so keep your eyes open and your weapons ready, and report to me if you see anything suspicious.” He picked up his mobile N56-TR walkie-talkie “Alpha, this is Keyes, status report.” “Keyes, this is Alpha, we’re holding out with no resistance at Omega. We’ve just heard from Bravo, they’ve got nothing at Foxtrot either.” “Okay Alpha, retain control of Omega. Inform Bravo of the same orders for Foxtrot. Keyes out” He holstered his walkie talkie. “Okay lads, we’ve got no terrorist threats inbound. We go for Echo.” Commanded Keyes to the team he preferred to be a part of: Charlie. Of the three teams of counter-terrorists, Charlie was the assault squad, specializing in medium ranged conflicts and more concerned with taking out the enemy. Alpha on the other hand is a fast attack team. They concentrate more on getting from one place to the other in minimal time, and don’t do so well in confrontations compared to Charlie. Bravo is a totally different team. They are very effective in ranged attacks, and could easily take out an enemy squad from a distance. However, they move very slowly, and cannot attack effectively at close ranges. “Hold a five metre spread and stay frosty, we’re taking Echo.” **//They appeared, seeming to grow from the hill. // **

Act 2: Taking Echo “This is Charlie, we’re moving out to Echo, Bravo, requesting sniper support from the ridge at Foxtrot, we may need assistance, over.” “Rodger that, we’ll have snipers on hold on top of the ridge. Give us a shout if things get out of hand.” Keyes lead team Charlie through the vast, flat plains to Echo, never once doubting the team’s ability to hold their ground in a fire-fight. With the leaving of the dense jungle behind them, they were very exposed to enemy soldiers, so they stayed lower than usual, often crawling when Keyes didn’t like the look of things. The large, abandoned warehouse in which the objective Echo was marked lay only a few hundred metres in front of them. When looking at it, there was a feeling that it shouldn’t be there, and it broke the line of the horizon. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Upon arriving, they went two-by-two cover formation up to the gigantic, brown-silver tin walls of the warehouse. There was one visible doorway, upon which Demolitions Expert Dutch Arizon placed breaching charges on, allowing Charlie to pour through the narrow doorway into the dim-lighted, one-roomed building. Keyes never once attempted to remove his sunglasses. Dutch Arizon wasn’t the kind of man you would’ve wanted to get into a fight with. Despite Keyes having all the brawn, he could keep his cool even on a 40degree Summer’s day. Where as Dutch was of a similar build to Keyes, if not a little bigger, and had a shorter temper than a bull looking at a matador. He decided that the military was the place he wanted to be, and who could blame him? In year six he blew up his step-father’s 1970 Cadillac Eldorado, his step dad’s most prized possession, by finding out how to ignite the fuel tank using a remote control from his RC car. In year eight he destroyed his science lab after he discovered how to create a military-style hand grenade. Not to mention in year twelve the state troopers stormed his house and confiscated more than five kilos of highly explosive plastic explosive, only being let off with a serious warning because the explosives were proven to be extremely well prepared, equal to that of even the most skilled demolitions experts on the planet. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The building was ginormous, able to fit at least two large aircraft, with room left over. The floor was littered with empty shell casings, and the odd ammo clip found here and there. Some still with a few bullets still inside. All around there were large, wooden crates with no labels, some were too tall to see over, giving the adrenalin rush from the suspense as you turn the corner. Odds are there was something illegal in them, and the bullet holes in them suggested they were worth the trouble of dying over, but there wasn’t enough time to find out what. Still in two-by-two, they moved up to the centre of the room swiftly and silently, where a single, roof mounted light barely brightened what seemed to a small, base of operations. Finally, they had reached objective Echo, the enemy command post. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Bluey, hack that terminal and get the Intel onto a hard-disk, we’ll escort it back to command from there.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Yes sir.” Came a response from the some-what nerdy, but still more than capable comms Officer, Matthew Monroe. Matthew had glowing red hair, and because of his Australian background, his call-sign was to forever be “Bluey”. He was transferred to Counter Terrorists from his Australian military desk job on account for accidently installing a virus onto the military network while he was trying to download “Angry Birds” for free off the internet. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“It’s going to take a while, but it can be done.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Good, but make it fast. I got a bad feeling about this.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">After a few minutes, Matthew turned from the small laptop screen to the rest of the team with a cheeky smirk on his face. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Okay, don’t get cocky Matt. Team, let’s get the hell out of here!” proclaimed Keyes. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">It seemed so easy, but that wasn’t the case. // **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Act 3: Ambush <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Bravo, this is Charlie, we’re falling back to base with the objective. Cover us from the ridge.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Rodger that.” Responded Jake Huggins, the leader of Bravo team, confidently. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes, along with his five other squad-mates, moved two-by-two towards their original point of entry, covering the pair that overtook them and waiting for the “all clear”, before they themselves overtook the leaders. Reaching the destroyed door, Bluey turned to face backwards to cover the team’s rear. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Keyes, I think I just saw a shadow.” Bluey whispered with urgency and some degree of panic to the team’s leader. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Possible tangos. Just stay quiet, we’re running a tight schedule as it is, so let’s try to avoid any terrorist encounters.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Yes sir.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">As they moved through the doorway, Keyes looked over his team, giving a slight chuckle at his team-mates who all gave a groan and nursed their eyes back to comfort from staring directly at the setting sun. His were shielded by his aviators. He had learned back in commander training that in order to lead an effective and precise team he would have to constantly be monitoring and adjusting the team’s moral and fatigue. Where moral was low, crack a joke, where fatigue was low, promise a long rest out of harm’s way. His team seemed to have generally high moral, partially from the constant teasing of Bluey and his nerdyness or hair, and a steadily decreasing fatigue, which he had expected to be low now, but seemed about moderate. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Alpha, do you copy?” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">No response. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“I say again, Alpha, do you copy?” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Still no response. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Team, I can’t make contact with Alpha. They’re supposed to be positioned just north of here. We’ll make a little detour and rendezvous with them at Omega on our way back to HQ.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The team got up after a short, 30sec rest and even in that time they managed to come up with 101 jokes about Bluey. Bluey didn’t really mind though, sometimes even making the jokes more offensive and pretending he wasn’t a red-headed nerd. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">~ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">As team Charlie neared the transition from yellow-green plains to the southern edge of a dense forest, Jake Huggins radioed in. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“KEYES! BANDITS SPOTTED SOUTH OF YOU! Approximately twenty men, looks like they’re armed to the teeth.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“The men were getting kind of bored,” explained Keyes. “can you cover us while we make it to Omega?” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“They’re only just in range of our heavy rifles, which we only have one of. But don’t worry, I’m a bullseye shot every time. Out.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Sure enough, a dozen or so men appeared, emerging from the gentle slope of the golden hill South of Charlie. Although no sooner had the first so-called freedom fighter been spotted, there was an enormous boom, sounding like it was from a cannon, and a cloud of red in place of the freedom-fighter. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“That was you, right?” Keyes asked Bravo nervously. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Like I said; bullseye every time”. Came the simple response. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Team,” Keyes turned to the slightly worried faces of Charlie, the monstrous booming continuing. “The enemy has been sighted south of here, if we want to survive, we need to join with Alpha and hold at Omega. Let’s move!” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Charlie moved with haste, nearing the cover of the dense plantations with every step, constantly turning and viewing their pursuers. Corporal Shepard, a middle aged American of Russian descent, was struck in the back of the heart by a typical AK-74u ballistic. //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Guideline 24 of commander training: Grieve you losses, but not during the battle. //Keyes remembered that, and for the safety of the remainder of the team, he pressed onwards, showing no emotion and not losing control of his senses. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes dived into the cover of a large thicket, just barely avoiding a bullet that whizzed over his head. He was quickly followed by Bluey and Dutch, with no sign from his other men. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“The two other corporals must’ve gotten separated, or worse.” Keyes imagined. He hoped that they had stayed together, and that at least one of them was carrying a radio. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Corporal Dillon, Corporal Dunn,” Keyes talked into the radio. “Do you copy?” He was ignoring the stupid requests of Bluey requesting to call in an airstrike and Dutch requesting a massacre; of the freedom fighters. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Corporals, do you copy?” He was now yelling into the radio. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">zzzzzzzzzzz “Keyes, this is Dillon. We got cut off from the forest by the enemy. Our only route now is west. What are our orders?” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes breathed a sigh of relief over the sound of Dutch’s light machine gun going all out on the hostiles. “Corporal, continue west and rendezvous with Bravo, they can cover you.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Copy that.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes assembled what was left of his team. “Bluey, Dutch, we are all that’s left of Charlie. We need to move now!” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes stood along with Dutch and Bluey and started the trek through the dense forest. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">They freedom fighters were advancing, only about one-hundred metres from the safety of the trees. Having already lost four men to Jake’s rifle, they dug in behind the hill, out of the sniper’s firing line. When there was a break in fire, they quickly jumped and sprinted for the edge of the Jungle and into cover. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">BOOM! <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Splat! <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Another unlucky fighter was gone. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The team had separated, there wasn’t much hope. // ** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Act 4: Holding Omega <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">What was left of Charlie stumbled through the thick obstacles. With Dutch turning every now and then when he had heard or seen the enemy gaining on them. He deployed his weapon’s bipod stand, laying it securely on any sort of boulder or log, and unleashing hell on the enemy. He wasn’t aiming to kill anyone, just to put some more distance between them and the tangos. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Keyes,” started Bluey, who was now at point position “there’s a clearing about twenty metres ahead. My guess is that it’s Omega.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Omega was previously used as an old, World War 2 bunker. Its dark-grey concrete walls were covered with ivy from years of abandonment. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“It has to be. Go ahead and investigate and give me a signal if it’s clean. Dutch,” he turned to face his other companion, who was firing his bulky machine gun like there was no tomorrow. “Omega’s up ahead. Stop wasting your ammo and get over here.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Dutch stopped firing and stood, using the boulder he previously took cover behind as a support. He then passed Keyes, only talking with the respecting nod, and joined with Bluey, who was now taking cover inside the bunker, popping up in front of the open window from time to time. Keyes entered the concrete stronghold and started to fire in short bursts towards the tree-line, hoping to slow down the advancing enemy. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Sir, we can’t hold them off for long, there isn’t much ammo left.” Dutch explained. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“I agree.” Bluey agreed. “Where the hell is Alpha, they should have been here!?” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“I don’t………” Keyes was cut off by a familiar sound, the sound of allied sub-machine guns. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The terrorists diverted their attention to the new threat, but it was already too late. No sooner than five seconds later, there were no sounds to be heard, until Captain Jules Black, leader of Alpha Company emerged from the trees. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“It’s okay Keyes, you can come out now.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Jules, thank god you arrived when you did. We were about to become sitting ducks.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Save your thanks for after the mission. For now we need to get back to HQ. Gather your men, we’ll escort you to base.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">As Keyes opened the solid, rusty-iron door and emerged from the bunker, he asked “Thanks for the assist, but where the hell were you guys?! We arrived here and expected the worst!” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“We were here, for quite some time actually. Our radio’s must be on different channels or something because I tried to contact you not half an hour ago, but couldn’t. We thought you guys were all dead, so we circled around to the east side of the Warehouse. It was then that we heard gunfire and Jakes 55 calibre rifle, and we circled back around to Omega to meet you guys fighting off about fifteen terrorists.” Explained Jules. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Okay, a minor mistake on everyone’s behalf. Let’s keep moving, we need to deliver the intel back to HQ.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Gentlemen,” Jules faced team Alpha. “ready up, we’re moving out.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">When it’s all over, I’m going to have a nice, long rest. // **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Act 5: Back to Base <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">With about five-hundred metres of dense jungle between teams Alpha and what was left of Charlie, Keyes heard his walkie-talkie sounding. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Charlie, this is Bravo, come in.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Instantly recognising the distinct, South-African accent, “Jake, this is Keyes, what’s the situation? Over.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“We just intercepted and eliminated a group of approximately seven bandits en-route to your position.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Copy that, thanks for the protection. We’re on our way to HQ now, fall back, and we’ll talk later.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Rodger that.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Keyes holstered his mobile radio. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Who was that captain?” Dutch and Bluey simultaneously questioned. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“It was Bravo saying they just took out a group of hostiles and are on their way back to HQ.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Okay,” said Dutch. “Let’s try to beat them back.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Rodger that.” Responded Keyes with a fun tone in his voice. “Let’s hurry!” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">~ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Upon arriving back at HQ, Alpha and Charlie were quickly found by Bravo, and stories were exchanged in the safety of home-base. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">No sooner than the teams had met up, two soldiers arrived from the west, Corporal Dillon and Corporal Dunn. They looked so relieved to have finally made it back to base safely. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">After the teams had showered and were relaxed, a man in his late fifties emerged from a recently landed chopper, accompanied by two highly decorated soldiers. This man was glowing with authority, and as soon as he stepped foot on the ground, all the men stood and formed two lines before him. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">“Fine job gentlemen. You managed to gather intelligence on our friends the drug runners and take down their private army while you were at it. You will all be promoted, congratulations.” His facial expression changed from one of proudness to one of sorrow. “There will be a ceremony for those who gave their lives helping our cause, but that will have to wait. We’ve just received word regarding the whereabouts of the drug-runner’s main base of operations. Pack your things, we’re going to Columbia.” <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Mission Report: <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Success <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">1 casualty <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Comments of leading officer: <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">They appeared, seeming to grow from the hill, it seemed so easy, but that wasn’t the case, the team had separated, there wasn’t much hope, when it’s all over, I’m going to have a nice, long rest, and a shave.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Captain Keyes