Solving Puzzle and doing impossible things
Chapter 1: Rumor
Captain John H. Watson studies a map of the surroundings, if you want to call half blank paper a map. The area hadn't been important enough to get a more detailed map, until now. So John has a very dangerous mission on hand with only a bit of information. Great, he loves going in blind but he couldn't show or even tell his men that this mission is more dangerous. than it seems. They still have to free the village and get the terrorist out of this area. They have a hideout somewhere in the Afghan mountains.
The call comes shortly before John heads for his tent; tomorrow will be a long and exhausting day, like all the days away from the base. One soldier on night watch calls John to the communication tent, he has a call from someone very high up as it sounds. The soldier says something about a Holmes. The name lets some bells ring in his head.
There was a rumor about a man that was leading their country from the shadows, someone very powerful, who consults the Queen, the Parliament and in international crisis. But there was another rumor, one soldiers tell each other at the camp fire at the base. The story about a man, an agent that is able to do impossible things no living, breathing human could possible survive. Where whole army's would fail, political conversation could achieve nothing and the best trained spies would be helpless, this agent would succeed..
Yes, those are the rumors about Holmes, what is true and which of these rumors is even real is still unanswered to this day. John had never really thought about ether of them. He has bigger problems like the mission, so who thinks he is important enough to call at such a critical point of time?
"Captain Watson?", the voice at the other end is asking. "Mycroft Holmes. I want to inform you that an agent will follow you on your mission." He doesn't wait for John's answer. That is definitely a man that is used to giving orders and being listened to.
"Sir, we are at the critical point of this mission. Babysitting an agent isn't helpful and very dangerous at this point." John tries to stay polite; this man could be the boss of his boss and you don't mess around with them (only when needed).
"You misheard Captain. This man won't be part of your mission. He has his own and will use your troops as cover to stay unnoticed as long as possible. You don't need to mind him or anything, He can defend himself." Now John is angry. Using his men, his soldiers as cover? No one is allowed to do that.
"Sir, with respect but my soldiers are no pawns in some game. They will have an important and dangerous mission ahead and I won't risk them by bringing in an unknown person."
"This isn't a suggestion, soldier. This is an order. Take him with you. He will arrive soon." And suddenly the call ends. Mycroft Holmes had the last word and that stinks.
John walks out trying to calm down and relax a bit in the cold Afghan night air. Now he has to inform the guard that someone is coming to them in the middle of the night.
His soldiers feel how uneasy their Captain is about it but also that he hasn't a say in it. In the end John waits with them. He wants to make sure no rouge member was walking into his camp.
It takes only another hour before a man arrives; he walks directly towards him and stops in front of John as if he knows him. "Captain, I think my brother informed you that I will follow you into the mountains for a while. Sherlock Holmes is the name."