Chapter one. Joseph Allen. Firebase Phoenix, Afghanistan.
Pfc. Allen looked at the newly arrived Afghan National Army troops that were obviously green as grass. Some of them were young and some of them looked to be in their mid to late 30's. Allen really didn't care, he was just worried about getting to the Pit. He had just finished helping Sgt. Foley show the recruits how to operate properly in battle, and now it was time for him to go and run the Pit course.
As he walked to the entrance to the Pit, Allen observed the rest of Firebase Phoenix. Some of the Rangers were shooting basketball on a small court that they had set up. Another small team of them were working on a disabled humvee, listening to some rap song that Joseph hadn't heard before. The sun was beating down and for a second, Allen considered taking off his gear like some of the others were doing. But he dismissed the thought, as he preferred to be ready at all times, no matter the condition.
Allen reached the steps that led into the course and made his way down, noticing Cpl. Dunn sitting on a table that had a few crates with weapons and ammo loaded into them. Dunn greeted him and told him about the reason why he had to run the course again.
"… Best shooter gets to join the prima donna squad… If that's your thing." Dunn told him.
Other than the Rangers, Joseph didn't know much about being in spec ops of any kind, so he really didn't care about being on top of everyone else. Besides, Foley and Dunn were his brothers, he had fought side by side with them numerous times.
Let's just get this over with, Allen thought. He made sure that he had a full clip in the M4 and his sidearm, and then told Dunn to open the gate.
Roach had been hiking in the mountains of Kazakhstan with Captain Mactavish for about 2 days and their trek seemed as if it weren't going to come to a conclusion any time soon. They had set out to find the Russian airbase that was located somewhere deep into the mountain range so that they can retrieve the ACS module.
Gary had seen some amazing sights while he was on the mission. The crisp, cold air filled his lungs as he took in a deep breath. Russian airplanes had been flying overhead every now and then, and Roach and the Captain had been tracking them for the past 48 hours. They were all heading somewhere that was deep in the north. Roach would watch as they flew and flew until they disappeared behind a mountain somewhere, seeming as if they were heading nowhere. Maybe we'll never find this airfield, Gary thought to himself.
"Okay Roach where going to stay put for the rest of the night. I see a cave over on the other side of this opening that we should use." Mactavish said to him as he pointed across a gap in the icy walk way that they were currently on. Roach eyed the gap and easily noticed how large it was.
"You want to jump that?" Roach asked him in a voice of disbelief. So far they had already cleared several small gaps and they were fairly easy. But this one was almost like a gaping hole in the iced ground.
"Just use your ice picks like we did on the ones before and you'll be alright." The Captain said in a calm, even voice. Before Roach could protest further, Mactavish broke off into a run and leaped off the edge of the gap. Roach watched as Mactavish clung to the wall of the side opposite the one that he was on. He barely made it! Captain Mactavish began climbing up the ice wall. Other than the close call, Mactavish made it look easy. The Captain made it to the top, climbed up, and then motioned for Roach to do the same as he did.
Piece of cake. Roach sprinted like Mactavish did and lunged off of the edge of the gap. He lifted his ice picks over his head in mid air, and then brought them down hard as he crashed into the opposite side of the gap. Both Ice picks held. Made it! He had even landed about halfway up the wall, unlike the Captain.
But before he could begin to climb, the ice started to crack. Roach felt a sharp pang of fear creep up into him. The ice began to break faster, but instead of watching to see what would happen, Roach had already began climbing up the wall as fast as he could. He could hear the clear sounds of ice being broken speed up as he continued his climb. He rose up the wall, willing himself to move faster and faster before it was too late. A large chunk of ice fell somewhere beneath him. Move. His arms were working like machines at the ice, not slowing down one bit. Just a little more, come on move! Roach was only a few seconds away from conquering the broken ice, but before he made it, he heard a loud cracking sound. He knew that it was the entire section of ice, and it was about to fall completely. Roach willed himself to move faster and faster, and faster…
"Hey isn't this danger close for the task force?" One of the rangers asked curiously.
"C'mon, since when does Shepherd care about danger close?" Allen heard Dunn ask him. Right after he said that, the whole building that was targeted disappeared behind a huge column of smoke and debris. The explosion shook the ground beneath the small convoy and caused the gates on the side of the bridge to shake violently. He felt the shockwave ripple through the air.
His fellow Army Rangers cheered in the destruction of the building. Some of them had been recording the explosion for videos and other documentaries.
"We're Oscar Mike!" Allen heard one of them yell.
Their small convoy took off across the portable bridge that they had deployed. As they crept into the city, Allen could sense that feeling growing stronger inside of him. It was the same feeling that he always got when he was in battle. Dust was everywhere.
"This place is dead." Allen heard Cpl. Dunn say. Dunn put emphasis on the word dead. Everything was quiet and felt still. Allen made sure that he stayed sharp. He scanned windows and alleys and the rooftops, searching for any signs of movement. He noticed movement, but he also noticed that it was just a civilian running to hide.
"Three foot mobiles, balcony, 12 'O clock. Probable militia." Joseph heard someone on the radio say. He immediately adjusted his aim and sighted on the three men that were standing on the balcony, looking right at their convoy. They were watching them closely, but they weren't armed.
"I bet they're scouting us." Cpl. Dunn warned.
"Eh, but that don't mean we can shoot 'em." Allen told him from his position in the gunner seat, in a reassuring tone. He didn't know if Dunn had heard him clearly or not, due to the sound of the humvee engines, but Allen was still right. Orders were orders, and they couldn't shoot them unless they shot first.
The convoy turned down another street and kept the same slow pace. Everything was still feeling quiet and still. The quiet before the storm.
A loud crackle of a sniper round pierced the silence. The bullet whistled in the air, as if it had come close to hitting Allen himself.
The convoy sped up, and Joseph knew what was coming next.
"All Hunter Victors, this is Sergeant Foley. Prepare to engage, we're taking sniper shots from multiple directions." Foley told everyone over the com system. One of the Rangers in the humvee in front of theirs yelled something that sounded like "Spin 'em up!", but Joseph didn't need anyone to tell him, because he was already warming up the mini gun.
Allen looked up and, for a second, felt frozen in time. He picked out every detail in front of him. The numerous infantry running on top of the school building. The sniper that was using the second story window as a vantage point. The squad of foot mobiles coming out from the entrance of the school.
And the one carrying the RPG that was on the roof of a building next to the school.
"There they go, light 'em up!" Dunn yelled. Allen felt the heavy vibrating ripples coursing through his arms as he let loose with the mini gun. The sound was almost deafening as hundreds of rounds were fired in a matter of a few seconds. He gritted his teeth as he fought to control his aim of the weapon. Allen sighted the multiple infantry units that were on the roof of the school and let a barrage of bullets fly. He watched in awe as the foot mobiles were torn apart from the force of the rounds, with blood flying everywhere. Two of them had limbs easily torn off and the rest were ripped apart by the barrage. One of them fell off of the roof, his life less body impacting the hard ground two story's below.
All sound was drowned out. Without letting his fingers off the trigger, Allen brought the cannon down to focus his fire on the windows of the second floor. The sniper that was posted up stood no chance at all. The bullets completely lacerated him and the room behind him. His rifle flew up in the air and went out the window. The sniper himself flipped backwards and out of sight. The whole window was basically gone, torn to shreds by Allen's hail of bullets.
Boom! The humvee that was directly in front of his was blown away by the foot mobile holding the RPG. I should have gone for him first! They're all dead and it's my fault…
"There's too many of them! Back the hell up!" Dunn yelled to the driver of their humvee. Allen took a moment to breathe as the humvee went into reverse and turned into a street that was next to the school.
"Technical, take it out Allen!" Sgt. Foley said surprisingly from the passenger seat. Allen aimed the cannon directly at the gunner of the technical. The gunner of the technical aimed his weapon directly at Allen.Joseph pulled the trigger the same time the other gunner pulled the trigger…
…but Allen had the bigger gun. His bullets started to fly well before the other gunner was able to open up. The gunner was erased from the earth, as well as the whole back section of the truck. Allen was so focused on taking out the truck that he didn't notice the squad of foot mobiles that was taking position on the roof of the building right behind the technical.
"Allen! On the rooftop! Drop 'em!" He heard Sgt. Foley yell. He sounded far away due to the constant rattle of the mini gun being so close. Allen probably wouldn't have even recognized them had it not been for Foley. The rounds sent the squad running, except for one who wasn't so lucky. His leg was ripped off from the force of the bullets. The rest of him fell off the roof in a bloody heap.