Disclaimer: Mercenaries and original Mercenaries characters are owned by LucasArts, and not by me.

Mercenaries

Ominous Beginnings

So, you want to know what happened here ten years ago? To learn about the furious war which turned these steppes and those mountains in the distance blood-red? Ahh, I know what you want to know. You want to hear the story of those mercenaries, the heroes who were never supposed to be. Yes, it is an interesting tale. You should have come to listen during the winter: it's a nice tale to listen to in a warm cabin, as the wind howls around mercilessly.

Okay, I will tell you, but this tale needs an introduction. Our world still runs on a black liquid that sparks violence as it becomes less common. We all know this, but just a mile from here—yes! The giant scorch marks on the ground, that's where some of the last great oil reserves were found. Everyone wanted that oil. Our neighbors, who once welcomed us as patriots succeeding from the old Soviet regime, made alliances with the countries around them, and banded together to rob us of some of the last great riches on this Earth. This country stood alone against the continent, and then the world.

ExOps Briefing Room, Undisclosed Location

1000 Hours

17 April, 2011

Linkup with ExOps president…………………………………..completed

Mattias Nilsson edged into the briefing room, trying his hardest to be stealthy after sleeping in from a hard night of partying. Actually, ever since North Korea, Nilsson's entire existence seemed to be one huge party, followed by a long string of hangovers. And as much he loved that kind of life, Mattias could not wait for the insertion date when he learned about the unstable violence in Kazakhstan. Now, he was sure this was his next destination.

The room was dark, as always, except for the giant screen showing an empty chair. Usually, the Executive Operations president, Carl Osborn, was there in the room, but a recent trip to Chile meant that he had to broadcast from Santiago. The edge of the screen showed that something was moving, and a moment later Osborn was back in his chair, his face so close to the camera that it showed off his less comely features. Mattias was standing by Fiona Taylor, who was readying a briefing presentation on her laptop to show.

"Mattias, what took you so long," inquired Fiona, who seemed to be the only level-headed person to work with ExOps' ragamuffin lot.

"The usual, celebration," Mattias replied, in a cool Swedish drawl that belied his chaotic and intimidating nature.

"It's been a year since Song!"

"So? I've had nothin' to do anyway."

"You could have at least saved the money for this mission…"

Mattias was slightly taken aback. "Oh, I could have done that. But it doesn't matter, I don't need any damn money to have some fun. I heard that it's Kazakhstan this time, is—"

ExOps President Osborn butted in. "Yes Mattias, the mission is in Kazakhstan. Now if you could please let Fiona and I brief you and the rest of the team…"

Mattias looked to his left to see four faces illuminated by the screen. Two he recognized: they were from North Korea as well, he had seen their dossiers. Christopher Jacobs, former Delta Force; and Jennifer Mui, former MI6—Mattias knew they had to be decent after surviving the hellhole that had been partially created by Mattias himself. The others must have been new, but then again there were many employees of ExOps who Mattias never saw.

"As you all know, the situation in Central Asia is chaotic….at best," Osborn continued, "Kazakhstan has split into a near civil war, between those who want to sell the rights to a recently-discovered oil field, and those who want to develop and sell the fuel themselves. Outside influences, chiefly Russia, China, and Iran are pressuring the government, and a coalition of Central Asian states is planning to invade. Trust me; they won't be the only nations to attack."

Mattias interrupted. "So, you're saying that Kazakhstan is just fucked?"

Osborn shook his head. "Ugh….well, it might look that way, but the Kazakh military has been seriously retooled in the past decade, and the Central Asian Alliance will certainly be held off for now. As for Russia and any other country…I can't say. But, the government has hired us to…well….do anything to keep the country from disappearing off the map or becoming a puppet. That means fending off armies, making alliances, breaking them, playing nations against each other, and even working for Kazakhstan's enemies. Fiona, it's your turn now."

The audio from the president stayed on, but the screen changed to the ExOps logo before showing a fancy topographical map of Kazakhstan.

"Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country in the world. To the north and west lies Russia, to the east China, and the south contains Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, which make up that Central Asian Alliance I had mentioned. The Aral Sea, on the border with Uzbekistan, has mostly dried out in the southern end, and it's pretty much a desert. With the exception of the southeastern mountains, Kazakhstan is almost completely dry grassland and desert. The government loyalists have the most influence in the center of the country, while the western and eastern areas—where most of the oil is—are nearly controlled by hardliners against foreign influence. The Kazakh military is excellent in terms of equipment…"

Perfect, more goodies, Mattias thought.

"…but, in training they're a very mixed bag. The air force and armoured corps are excellent, but I wouldn't trust the infantry by themselves. The Central Asian Alliance is nothing to worry about, but I've heard rumors about Kyrgyzstan's Special Forces, and all say they're pretty good. I think you know about China and Russia enough, plenty of numbers, fair training, both stinking rich. I wouldn't be surprised if the Allied Nations and the Russian Mafia join in, so you won't be alone in this at any time."

The President chimed in. "I suggest that you stay as a team on this mission, and stick together. I don't want ExOps operatives firing at each other, Jacobs…and Nilsson."

There was an incident in Pyongyang a year earlier.

"So that means taking the same contracts. This is a very complex situation; even more so than in Korea, so don't spark a Third World War."

"You will depart at 2100 hours tonight," Fiona continued, "your insertion point will be 100 Kilometers West of the Aral Sea. It's the desert, and the snows have just melted; dress appropriately."

"Good luck."

Linkup with ExOps president terminated

Note: Hope you all liked the introduction. Yes, I had a WW2 Medal of Honor fiction, but writers block has hit hard on it. In the meantime, I plan to make this a pretty long series, spanning the time between Korea and Venezuela. Review, tell me what you think.