Chapter 2
Ben and Lucas stood in the men's restroom having a chat about casually sneaking glances at women, when they heard gunshots fired. Both of them froze immediately and looked at each other.
Lucas broke the stunned silence. "Were those gunshots?"
Ben, still in shock, nodded. He quickly and quietly took a peek out of the door and saw the backs of a few armed men walking into the ballroom entrance. He shut the door and turned back to Lucas with a heavy sigh. He nodded his head towards the other side of the empty room as they walked over.
"Looks like trouble." He whispered. Quick! We can't get caught." He looked up at the ceiling and noticed the air vent in the corner. "Help me move this chair." He grabbed one of the lounge chairs and they both started dragging it over near the vent. Krieg climbed on top of it and was able to reach the air vent and push the cover in and over.
"Here. Use my hand to climb in." He clasped his hands in front of him, ready to boost Lucas up the vent. Once he made it in, he reached down to help Krieg up. Lucas held his hand as Krieg took a step onto the top of the lounge chair for leverage. Once they were both in the vent, Krieg placed the cover back on to hide their tracks. He motioned for Lucas to slowly crawl back and followed him, careful not to make too much noise.
"We've got to find out what's going on. Head towards the ballroom." He whispered.
"Okay." Lucas' heart was beating faster than normal. The party had gone from dull to terrifying in a matter of seconds and now he and Krieg had to stay as quiet as possible if they had any chance of getting out of there. It didn't take them long to arrive at the adjoining vent and have a bird's eye view of what was happening in the ballroom.
In the ballroom:
Several of the men were herding people to different corners of the room. Noyce spoke up, making sure his wife was behind him as he walked to the man who seemed to be in charge of the invading group.
"What is the meaning of this? Who are you?" He tried getting close to the obvious leader, an athletic-looking man with dark black hair and a heavy mustache. The man faced him with an amused look on his face, his Turkish accent thick with malice in his intent.
"Don't worry, Secretary Noyce. All will be revealed in due time. First things first, though...I'm going to need you to come with us."
He motioned to a few of the men to step forward. "Grab the Captain. Make sure no one else in this room is armed and take away their comLinks and cel phones."
The men followed their orders and corralled Nathan with their guns, leading him back to the rest of the group. A few other men started patting people down to check for guns. One of them grabbed Chief Crocker and found a concealed gun in his pant leg, quickly pocketing it as he continued searching for other weapons. Once Noyce and Nathan were led near the doors, the leader opened it while the rest of the team led them out. Meanwhile, he directed a message to the remaining hostages in the ballroom.
"Now, I suggest the rest of you try and get comfortable in here. You will probably be here for some time. Just follow the rules and no one will get hurt. My men are under strict orders to shoot to kill if anyone tries any funny business. Should you need to use the restroom, simply let one of them know and they will escort you. Do I make myself clear?"
Various people fearfully nodded their heads in agreement.
"Good. Speaking of which..." He turned to one of his men. "I want you to check the restrooms. Make sure we don't have any guests unaccounted for."
"Yes, sir." The mercenary quickly went out the door towards the restrooms. With that, he walked out the main doors. He looked back at the small group herding Noyce and Bridger. At that moment, the mercenary which had gone into the restroom emerged and joined them.
"Sir, the restrooms were empty."
"Excellent. Let's move to the staging area."
Back in the ballroom:
Lucas and Krieg tried their hardest to keep quiet throughout the ordeal. As they saw their captain and Secretary General Noyce being escorted out, their hearts sank. When they heard the leader ask his men to check the restrooms, they looked at each other, a mixture of unspoken gratitude and relief at knowing they hadn't been caught. What happened next surprised them.
Two of the men who were patting people down walked towards Kristin.
"Are you Kristin Westphalen?" One of them asked roughly.
She tried to think of something to say, but in the interest of keeping the peace, she simply nodded in agreement.
"You'll have to come with us." They each grabbed one of her arms and started dragging her towards the entrance.
Commander Ford spoke up. "Hold on. Why are you taking Dr. Westphalen? Leave her alone."
One of the men answered threateningly in a thick Middle-Eastern accent as he used his free hand to reach for his gun. "You'd do well to keep quiet, Commander. Our boss has plans for the pretty lady." He grinned evilly. A few of the other men held their weapons ready as well, implying a threat.
Seeing he was outnumbered, Ford had no choice but to back off, but not without giving Kristin a sympathetic glance. She seemed to understand and appreciate his attempt, even as she struggled to break free from her captors.
Back in the air vent:
Lucas looked at Krieg, trying to process what was happening below them. He whispered carefully.
"We've got to do something."
"Yeah...we've got to buy our people some time. What do you say we find a way to get to the main controls?"
Lucas took a moment to process what he was saying and nodded. "Yeah. That sounds like a good plan."
They quietly crawled towards what they knew to be the main lobby.
The group of men leading Noyce and Nathan walked to a hotel suite near the ballroom. Upon entering, they were led to a large gray couch in the middle of the room. When they sat down, each one had their hands tied behind their back by one of the mercenaries. Nathan took a good look around the room. These guys had obviously planned ahead. The bar area was covered with various weapons and a tray of what could only be described as instruments of torture. There was one bedroom to the side, which he noticed had a large video camera in it. There must have been at least thirteen armed men in the room watching over them, leaving little to no chance of escaping. Finally, the leader sat down on a chair across the way from the couch.
"Well, I'm sure you're all confused as to what's going on. Allow me to introduce myself. We are part of the People's Freedom Alliance of Turkey. You may call me Yosef. Yosef Tanyu."
Noyce and Bridger winced as they recognized the last name and Yosef continued. "Yes. Hasim Tanyu was my brother." He let that sink in. Nathan shook his head remembering that awful day when their lives were all in danger as they responded to a mining colony in the Black Sea Confederation that was being invaded by this same group.
"Why? Why are you doing this? Your group terrorizes innocent people."
"You see, we have tried to reason with your superiors...to peacefully demand we be recognized as a separate entity from the Black Sea Confederation. But, much to our disappointment, the UEO decided it wasn't a worthwhile pursuit to take us seriously."
Noyce interjected. "You say you wanted us to recognize you but the people of your country elected your president and voted to stay. You cannot argue with democracy."
Yosef scoffed disgustedly. "Democracy? What a joke. You train people to believe in the system so that the majority learns to suck off your teat. And you silence those who know better and are willing to fight for their freedoms. Your people disposed of my brother to soothe your own egos."
Nathan was frustrated that this man blamed him for saving innocent lives. "Disposed of? Your brother and some of your mercenaries threatened to blow up a family-owned mining colony."
Yosef's voice grew louder as he became more emotional about his cause. "We were trying to get through to the UEO. Diplomacy does nothing...nobody listens to our words. Our actions speak much louder."
Noyce angrily responded. "The UEO does not negotiate with terrorists."
"Well maybe you just need the right incentives."
Nathan responded. "Incentives? Your group attacked innocent families and your brother shot at my men for trying to save them. We did what we had to do to keep the peace."
Yosef feigned disappointment. "Yes, our methods may be harsh, but our intentions are honorable. The UEO hails itself as a peacekeeping organization, and yet you are showing off your torpedo power and threatening those who are simply trying to create their own destiny. Every day you and the military force of the world murder dozens upon hundreds of people without remorse. We simply wanted to level the playing field and fight fire with fire."
Noyce responded. "The UEO is a peacekeeping organization. It is you who are trying to destroy that peace."
"Come now, Noyce. We're not evil. We are simply fighting for what is right."
"You force innocent people into joining you by threatening them and their families. How is that not evil?"
"We merely want to set up our own confederation. Our own system of government. One that is not under the control of your silly rules. A place where people can live without fear of government control. They can choose their own destiny." He seemed lost in his words and quickly snapped out of it. "While you're out parading your new ship and its supposedly benevolent captain, my people starve and fight to try and get more assistance from you. We will no longer tolerate it. What gives you the right to threaten people for power and not allow us to do the same?" Yosef was getting visibly upset, trying to keep his anger in check. He took a deep breath before continuing.
"Now you must answer for your actions. You and all who represent the UEO." He spoke into his comLink. "Bring her here."
Nathan tensed up, worried about who "her" was. His deepest fear was confirmed as the door opened and Kristin stumbled into the room, led by two men.
"Get your hands off of me. I can walk myself." She twisted her arm and the guards let her go, but not without making sure their guns were ready to fire if she made a run for it. She pretended to be brave but her heavy breathing and shocked glance around the room gave her away. Yosef smiled approvingly.
"Oh yes. I can already tell this is going to be good fun."
Nathan spoke up nervously, worried for what would happen to Kristin.
"Leave her alone. You don't need her. She's a civilian. If your beef is with the UEO, you've got who you want."
The man responded with an evil grin and cocked his gun as if to signal his seriousness. "Captain Bridger, don't try and use your legendary diplomatic skills to get out of this one. She may not be military, but I understand you and the lovely doctor have become quite close, haven't you?" Nathan kept quiet as he clenched his jaw and tightened his fists, trying to keep himself from making the situation worse.
"Haven't you?" Yosef demanded. Nathan simply looked down and nodded unwillingly as Yosef continued.
"Yes, well...here is the best part. You see, there is no use trying to reason with the UEO through diplomacy. They won't listen to us. What they need is real incentive." He stood up and walked over to Kristin, putting his arm around her shoulders, causing her to wince but knowing better than to fight this man. "And what better incentive than the Golden Boy captain of their flagship tearfully begging his superiors to take action because he is watching his lover suffer enormously?" He tightened his grip around her shoulders, enjoying the look of sheer terror on all their faces.
