G.I. JOE: America's Special Mission Force Chapter 6

June 7, 2011

The Pentagon, 2:30PM Eastern Standard Time

Colonel Clayton Abernathy entered the room in sub-level 2 and paused, looking at the seven men sitting at a table in front of him. He was unsure what they had in store for him, and frankly a little nervous. These men were power players with centuries of experience between them.

"Have a seat Colonel," Major General James Longstreet Flagg said. He sat near the center of the long table. Sitting dead center was Lieutenant General Joseph Colton of the Special Forces. General Flagg of Army Strategic Command, Rear Admiral Everett Colby of the Navy Fleet Command and Brigadier General Sam Hollingsworth of the Air Force sat to his left. To Colton's right were Major General Aaron Austin and Brigadier General Ray Ryan of the United States Marine Corps. At the far right was an unknown man in a business suit.

"Colonel this is Admiral Richard Dyson." Colby said when he noticed Hawk's glance. "We served together for some time before the CIA hijacked him."

"Admiral," Hawk said tightly. He tried getting a read for the thin man, but his gaunt face was emotionless. If his dark hair thinned much more he would be almost skeletal in appearance.

"It's okay, Colonel." Flagg said. "For what we are getting ready to do we needed a seventh man. Admiral Dyson has been a trusted friend to most of us over the years."

"I understand your mistrust, Colonel." Dyson said in a quiet voice. "I am fully briefed on the whole cobra affair. So feel free to speak freely."

"We are about to go completely black, Clay." Colton told his star pupil. "The President is close to butchering our entire military's budget. Possibly worse than that idiot Carter."

"Worse he appears uninterested in defense at all." Austin Continued. "We have to act quickly before things get out of hand."

"With all do respect," Hawk told them. "I will not do anything illegal."

"And we're not asking you to." Colby told him.

"In 1984 President Reagan issued an order to prevent a President from completely cutting off our ability to operate." Flagg said. "This order is so secret that it is known to only a handful of officers in the Special Warfare community. It states that an advisory panel of seven senior officers can, in times of emergency, form a unit that does not answer to the chain of command."

"This is why I was invited," Dyson smiled tightly.

Caracas, Venezuela 2:20PM Venezuelan Standard Time

The Bombardier Global Express XRS business jet taxied into a private hanger of the small airport just outside the city. Two men in dark gray suits with crimson red ties pulled the door down to reveal the built in steps as two more rolled a short ramp up. Another two men, dressed the same as the others, exited and the six stood at attention; three on each side of the ramp. A Japanese man dressed in a well tailored white suit came next, followed by a woman who's expensive black business suit was only slightly less dark than her long hair. Two more men in gray suits and red ties followed.

"The cars are ready, Baroness." One of the men said as she reached the floor.

"Excellent," She smiled at the man. "How many men are on site?"

"Two other Guardsmen and a platoon of Vipers. We have two flanking vehicles to protect your limo."

"Fine. You will take Storm Shadow and myself to the estate first."

"Yes, Baroness. The Commander has requested that Storm Shadow contact him as soon as we reach the estate."

"Then let's not keep the Commander waiting," Storm Shadow smiled. Enjoying the bitter look on the Baroness' face.

Indian Ocean, just off the coast of South Africa 8:50PM South African Standard Time

The combat rubber raiding craft quickly floated up from the submerged USS Virginia, the lead boat of her line of attack submarines. Ten men swam up to the raft, with six stripping off their LAR V closed circuit rebreathers and fins and handing them to the other four. The four swam back to the sub as the others climbed aboard the raft.

Stalker fired the motor up and guided the CRRC forward as the others got their gear ready. They traveled six miles before putting to shore on one of the few empty sections of South Africa's coast, south of Durban. They unloaded the raft and hid it as well as they could, with Duke marking the location on his GPS.

Snake Eyes shouldered his pack and took the lead, setting a slow pace into the darkness. After going five miles they discovered Hawk's present. The Land Rover sat under a camo net that they quickly pulled off and packed up. Finding the extra gear inside, they climbed in and began driving north.

The Pentagon 2:55PM EST

"Your unit will be almost entirely self contained, with only occasional support from the other services."

Flagg told Colonel Abernathy. "You're to give us a list of what equipment you'll need by the end of the month."

"Intel will be a little trickier." Dyson said. "Another reason I'm here. I have back doors into the computers at CIA, the FBI, NSA and SOCOM. You'll have access to what they have as well as our satellites. You won't be able to retask those, of course."

"Your personnel will be taken from all branches." Flagg continued. "Whatever specialists you think you need. You have the files on who we think are best suited. Actual selection is up to you. Try keeping it as small as possible. We'll need that list by the end of the month as well."

"Your headquarters will be known only to you, General Flagg and Myself." Colton said. "You remember that baby sitting job we had in '89? It's been empty since then. As of last month it has disappeared completely from our records."

"I remember, sir." Hawk said as he thought back to the old missile base.

"I thought you would. The location is a complete dead zone. There's no way your team would get connected to it."

"All personnel will have their identities removed from the public record." Austin said. "This operation will require the utmost secrecy. Details will even be compartmentalized among us. To prevent any type of inquiry."

South Africa, 9:30PM SAST

They parked the Land Rover three miles away and unloaded the gear. Flint and Snake Eyes went ahead to scout as the others started off at a slower pace. The shrub forest tapered out into maize fields that were being overtaken by weeds. They stopped at a small hillock slightly less than a mile north of a small farm. Bazooka and Duke began setting up a 60mm mortar as Breaker checked over their LASH radios.

Flint, Stalker and Snake Eyes made their way to the opposite side of the farm, all armed with two M72A7 LAW rocket launchers. Breaker watched them through the night vision scope of his suppressed M-110 sniper rifle. As the three took their positions Duke started a radio check.

Duke and Bazooka were manning the mortar with Breaker as their spotter. Stalker had taken position east of the farm. He was armed with a M4 carbine and M203 grenade launcher, as well as the rocket launchers. Snake Eyes was on the south side, armed with a M4 and his customary UZI slung over his shoulder. Flint was to the west and had a M4 and a Mossberg 590 shotgun.

After the radio check all three men knelt and set the rocket launchers on the ground. Breaker checked

the farm, finding two men armed with AK-47's on the roof of the main house. He read distance off to Bazooka who estimated his range as he aimed the mortar.

"This is Breaker," he said over the radios. "I have positive identification on one of the suspects. The mission is go."

Caracas, Venezuela 3:00PM VST

The estate was a private mansion surrounded by an imposing wall. At the main gate were four men in blue suits, though obviously armed. Two others watched the rear gate. Besides the normal cameras and motion sensors were several two man viper patrols, in full uniform and armed with FN F2000 assault rifles.

Inside it was obvious that the owner was immensely wealthy. The beauty was lost on the woman waiting impatiently by the door.

"Tonight, after meeting with McCullen at his castle, I have small assignment for you." Cobra Commander told Storm Shadow over the communications screen. "The Headman has decided that the cost of doing business with us is not to his liking. You are to convince him that it is in his best interest to continue our association. Kill his personal guards and relay to him that I look forward to continuing our partnership."

"Yes Commander," Storm Shadow said quickly and turned to leave as the screen went dark.

"Everything is well, I trust?" The Baroness asked as he joined her.

"The Commander just has a small assignment for me while we're here, Baroness."

"Anything I can help with?" She asked, distrust spreading across her face.

"Just a small thing as I said." Storm Shadow said, not letting the smile at the Baroness' discomfort show. She was still upset at Storm's rapid rise to the Commander's side. "It won't hold up our departure tomorrow."

The Pentagon 3:50PM EST

"One last thing before you leave, Colonel." Flagg said as Hawk stood before them. General Flagg walked over and handed him a small box. "A colonel will have trouble commanding the amount of authority this operation calls for. So congratulations on your promotion General Abernathy."

"Long overdo if you ask me," Austin grunted.

"It becomes official tomorrow. But we thought you could use a chance to get used to it." Flagg told him.

"Thank you sir," Hawk said trying not to show his surprise.

"You have a lot of work to do General," Colton said as he smiled. "Remember, we need everything by the end of the month."

South Africa 11:20PM SAST

The first 60mm mortar shell impacted just in front of the farm house, creating a small crater and causing havoc among the occupants. A second shell hit the front of the house twenty-three seconds later. Then it began raining shells as Duke loaded the mortar as fast as Bazooka could aim. The twenty rounds smashed the farmstead and left it burning. Duke grabbed his M4/M203 combo as Bazooka picked up his M249 SAW and ran for the farm.

After giving the occupants a moment to recover, three 66mm rockets launched into what was left standing. Seconds later a second barrage hit the farm. Then five men charged from all directions, quickly taking down any survivors.

Caracas, Venezuela 5:15PM VST

The road continued as the tropical forest stopped. They had seen the surveillance photos but still were stunned by the ancient castle rising up from the Venezuelan hillside. The limo stopped at a guardhouse manned by a squad of Anglo soldiers dressed in traditional Scottish uniforms, including kilt and bonnet. A moment later they were waved through and continued another half mile to the main entrance. They were waived through and the limo stopped at a wide and steep set of stairs leading to the manor house. Two squads stood at attention in rows leading from the door to the bottom step. A black and gold carpet ran down the steps between the two squads.

Two men dressed in traditional uniforms walked down the steps, the youngest opened the door to the limo. Storm Shadow climbed out, did a quick check and motioned the Baroness to follow.

"Welcome to Castle Destro, Baroness De Cobray." The older man said. "I'm Sergeant Major Dobbie of the 7th Highland Grenadiers."

"Impressive," The Baroness said looking around. The squads at attention wore the modern black uniforms of the Iron Grenadier, including black body armor and medieval style helmet and face mask. Security cameras were set up to allow no blind spots and she was certain weapons were trained on them all.

"Yes, mum. Laird McCullen had it shipped here stone by stone from his ancestral home. My Laird asks if you both would like to discuss business over dinner. Though he is perfectly willing to handle this transaction before dining."

"My colleague has other business tonight so we would prefer to settle this as quickly as possible."

"Of course. I will escort you to the Lairds office. Your guards can wait in the main hall."

South Africa 11:45PM SAST

"Eight bodies in all, Stalker." Flint said after they checked the wreckage. "No sign of Cristi."

"He either skipped on us or this was a coincidence." Stalker said as he hit the call button on his LASH headset. "Yo Breaker, you scanning the friendlies?"

"Yeah, they either haven't been alerted or they're ignoring this." Breaker told him.

"Roger, keep listening. Let's give it one more check and pack up. I want us at sea before sunrise."

Castle Destro, Venezuela 5:25PM VST

The Sergeant Major escorted his two guests to a large oak door. He rang a buzzer and then opened the large door as it clicked.

"Sir your guests. The Baroness Anastasia De Cobray and Mr. Thomas Arashikage. This is James McCullen, twenty-fourth Laird of Castle Destro."

"Thank you Sergeant Major," McCullen said as he stood up. "That will be all for now."

"Very good, Sir." And with a salute he left, the door shutting behind him.

"Welcome, can I interest you in something to drink?" McCullen asked as he bowed to his guests.

"No thank you," The Baroness said as she studied the him, realizing that he had a gun holstered beneath his tailored blue jacket. "We are only here a short time and have much to do."

"Then to business," McCullen said as he motioned for the two to take seats. "Have a seat and lets talk." He walked back and sat down behind his very old oak desk. Behind him was a display case of medieval weaponry, the center piece a claymore sword and a rusting iron mask.

"So what can I get for you?"

"We're looking to replace our existing armament. At the moment we need one thousand assault rifles five hundred carbines, one hundred light machine guns, one hundred medium machine guns and fifty light anti-tank weapons. Also we are aware of your XGG-96 and would be interested in purchasing a few of the prototypes."

McCullen hit a few keys on the computer on his desk. "Let's see, that's a large shipment. I can give you twelve hundred FAMAS G2 which have changeable barrels to make it a carbine, assault and sniper rifle. It's 5.56mm of course. I can round those out with 300 Beretta SCP-70/90 carbines, also in 5.56. I have 200 Vektor SS-77 machine guns. They're 7.62mm but I'll throw in a hundred mini-SS conversion kits. That will change the caliber to 5.56 and shorten and lighten the gun for squad use. In my humble opinion this is one of the best machine guns out there. But I can find something else if you prefer."

"Your selections are fine. What about the heavy weapons?"

"The LAWs I can give you a mix of disposable and core systems. I have ten XGG prototypes available, at a million and a half each. I should warn you, we still haven't gotten their weight down to a manageable size. At least for a normal soldier."

"That part is not a problem. How soon can the shipment be delivered?"

"I'd say it would take four shipments, the first could be sent in a week. Payment is due before each shipment. Here is the account for the transaction and the amount." McCullen printed out a slip of paper and handed it to her.

"That will be fine. I was also told to ask about your High Intensity Scout System and STUN cars."

"Both are still in design, but we should have working models within three months. I do have some former Soviet light tanks available if you need an armor option now."

"I will discuss that with my employer. Thank you for your time."

"Thank you for your business. If you two would like to dine with me, my chef has done an excellent job of turning the local ingredients into something civilized."

"Once again, thank you. But I'm afraid we have more business to attend to."

"Of course." McCullen smiled as he noticed Storm Shadow glance at the weapons display for the seventh time since they arrived. "You are curious about the sword, Mr. Arashikage?"

"Yes," He said. "It looks formidable."

"At one time it was. Now it is next to worthless. That has been the blade of the Laird Destro for seven hundred years. Last used in battle in 1811 by the eighteenth Laird. The mask above it belonged to the the ninth Laird, my namesake. The French placed it on him as punishment for selling to both sides. That was in 1641 I believe. We keep it as a reminder."

"A reminder not to deal to both sides?" Storm asked.

"A reminder not to get caught," McCullen laughed. "The Sergeant Major is here to escort you out. Good evening to you both."

South Africa 11:55PM SAST

They started back up the hill when the gunfire erupted. Bazooka was caught in the chest and Duke pulled him down as the others took cover. Eight men in red and gray camo with red body armor charged out of tunnels in the forest. Seventeen more wearing blue came from behind the farm, surrounding the team.

Duke, Flint and Snake Eyes began returning fire as Stalker worked on Bazooka. Three of the men in blue and one of the others went down before the attack stalled.

"Shit," Duke muttered as the Crimson Guardsman scrambled away. "Heads up, the ones in red are wearing body armor. Not sure how our carbines are going to work."

"Breaker give me a head count!" Stalker shouted over the lash as he continued to test his medic training.

"Breaker you read me?" He called a minute later wen he didn't get a response. "Boys, Breaker is out of contact. We may be on our own."

Caracas Venezuela 11:55PM VST

It was not the tallest building in Caracas' business district, but it was definitely one of the most lavish. No one noticed the Japanese man come in with the late night cleaning crew. He entered the elevator with the same crew, but stayed on as they exited. When the doors opened at the next level he was gone.

The Headman's living quarters is on the top floor. Office and guard station on the floor below. Storm Shadow thought as he climbed the elevator cable. Sensors on the elevator doors on both floors. Eight of his personal guard, called headhunters between the elevator and the door to the targets suite. Should be armed with MP5s and handguns, all veterans of the Venezuelan Army.

He reached the top and peered through a vent above the elevator doors. Eight guards stood in the narrow hall way. Good kill zone, he thought. Definitely not amateurs. Cameras faced the doors and two more faced the suite door.

Eight guards, plus two on the other side of that door. The Headman had come up with one of his newer escorts two hours early and should be occupied or asleep, Storm shook his head at the thought of what he may have to see.

Storm Shadow checked the maintenance hatch above his head. Sloppy, they wired the doors but not this. He pushed the door up and pulled himself into the crawl space. Drop ceiling, he shook his head again. And no cameras up here, maybe I was wrong about their not being amateurs.

He crawled forward slowly, careful to keep his weight on the frame and not the tiles. The drop ceiling ended at the suite, but a ventilation shaft ran through it. Noticing a space above the shaft he climbed up and crawled along it.

Another drop ceiling, he thought after crawling a few feet. This guy was begging for this to happen. Remembering the layout he climbed off the shaft and crawled to the far left. Storm pulled up a ceiling tile and peaked through.

The Headman slept in a huge bed, a rather attractive Hispanic girl slept beside him. She looks fifteen, Storm thought, disgusted. He dropped down to the soft carpet and walked over to the bed. A gun sat in a holster on the bedside table and Storm pocketed it.

"Huh," the Headman mumbled as he came awake; feeling something cold across his throat. He came fully awake as he saw a man dressed in white standing over him.

"Shh," Storm Shadow whispered as he pushed the sword against the drug lords neck. "We don't want to wake the girl." He looked down at the short, fat, greasy man and moved the sword just enough to draw blood.

"What do you want?" The Headman asked quietly, feeling a trickle of blood slide down his neck.

"I come from Cobra. We wish to continue our arrangement and have heard you are having second thoughts. This of course must be a misunderstanding. Am I right?"

"Cobra is bringing the wrong kind of attention to me. With the Mexican cartels at war it isn't safe to be public."

"You stand to lose more by not cooperating." Storm told him sheathing his sword. "I'm a reminder that you will be held to your obligations."

"Headhunters!" The Headman yelled as he saw the man put his weapon away. Storm Shadow smiled as he heard the guards running toward him.

The two men rushed through the door and Storm threw a throwing knife into the throat of the first. The second raised his gun and Storm swept one of his swords up and jabbed it through his chest. He turned as heard the girl scream and saw the Headman holding her in front of him as he radioed the other guards.

"Pathetic," he snarled as he heard the outer doors burst open. He leaped up into the ceiling as all eight guards rushed in.

"What's happening?" The lead guard asked as Storm Shadow dropped behind them. Twin swords thrust through two guards backs and then Storm was among them, a ninja-to in each hand. He slashed one across the chest and another across the throat. The leader raised his gun and Storm threw a sword, the blade spearing through his heart; causing the mans trigger finger to tighten and fire a short burst, wounding another guard.

Storm Shadow kicked one of the men as his sword sliced through another. Then he drew the Headman's pistol and shot the the wounded man and the one he kicked. He tossed the gun to the floor and pulled his sword from the one guard, sheathing both blades.

"You have been warned," He told the Headman and calmly walked out the door.