Pt 2: Zartan
A small holographic image appeared in front of Zartan. A communication he had been expecting, but dreading at the same time. It was Jackal, a man he had once known as Destro, before the current Destro had joined Cobra all those years ago.
"Thank you for helping me deliver my message to Destro, Zartan. Your base florida base is swarming with snakes." Jackal said.
"An unavoidable circumstance, Jackal. I've had to make a deal... in return for my health." Zartan replied.
"Where is your daughter. Zartan?"
"She is... Away at present. You cannot date her."
Jackal smiled. "I merely wanted to make sure she was safe. To reward you for helping me meet with Destro, I am giving you this warning. We are going to take care of your snake infestation."
Zartan's eyes widened in horror... "What? When?"
"As we speak, Zartan. Run for your life, if you value it. Blood for the Baron!" The screen went black.
He opened a new channel on his communications console. "Zartan to all Dreadnoks. Get out of the swamp, or to shelters now. Emergency Evacuation."
Buzzer's face appeared on the screen. "Oi, Zartan... what about the Snakes?"
"Let them fend for themselves."
Zartan's attention was drawn to the sound of machine gun fire out in the swamp. It had already begun. He glanced down at the bomb shelter entrance, thinking of taking shelter there, but then thought better of it. Now that his skin condition was cured, he would be better off in the swamp where he could hide more effectively.
***
A man stood in front of a blood colored Hiss tank, he wore a black military cut uniform, with a red cap and shoulder stripes, and a skull insignia on his chest, his entire manner spoke of a life in the military, although his face had not weathered the years very well. He was the Black Major.
He was surrounded by equally disciplined troopers dressed all in red, with red helmets with red face plates, except for the black and white eye slits. They were all well armed. Jackal himself was sitting in the cockpit of the Hiss tank.
"Our... Special Forces have already begun their assault on the Cobra forces. Soon they shall begin to try and flee the swamp. Your job is to prevent that from happening. I have marked all the known swamp exits, and a few hidden ones. Each squad is to take a Tank and stake out an exit. When you see someone attempting to flee, mow them down. There is a motorcycle gang in there in addition to Cobra. They are not the main priority, it is acceptable if some of them escape, but anyone wearing a Cobra Uniform must die. One more thing." The Black Major held up a photo of Zartan, "This man is one of Cobra's inner circle. Bring me his body as proof of the kill."
"BLOOD FOR THE BARON!!" The troops shouted, then ran to their posts. The Black Major smiled. He had been waiting for his revenge for a very, very long time, and now it was finally starting to happen.
***
Buzzer and Torch, peeked out from their hiding place.. They were suddenly glad they had opted to not take their usual way out of the swamp. A red tank was sitting there waiting for them. They did not recognize the red uniforms, but Buzzer couldn't help feeling like he should.
A few of the newer Dreadnoks staggered onto the hidden road, not seeing the tank wanting for them, and Buzzer and Torch knew better than to shout a warning. They took a stupid risk in taking the usual way out, even if it was one of the hidden exits, they would have to deal with it themselves.
The tank opened fire, and mowed the men down with machine guns. "More Blood for the Baron!" someone shouted.
"These guys is nutters," Buzzer whispered, then pulled his head back down. They would make sure they were nowhere near any tanks or men in red when they made their break from the swamp.
***
From his vantage point in the trees, Zartan had an excellent view of the fighting. Whatever it was Cobra was fighting, it wasn't human. They seemed like reptiles, wearing red swimsuits, carrying nets and tridents equipped with lasers. At range, they were an even match for the Cobra troops, but the catch was keeping them at range. The swamp was the best environment for that kind of combat, there were too many trees to get in the way, and too many places for them to hide. Plus the creatures seemed to be amphibious. They moved faster through the water than anything Zartan had ever seen before. And in hand to hand combat, the Cobra troops had no chance against the monsters. They had overwhelming strength, and were not afraid to literally bite someone's head off if they got the chance.
The green Krakens made short work of every one they came across. Shooting some with lasers, skewering others on their tridents, and simply ripping others apart after they had been ensnared in their nets.
Zartan adjusted his pigmentation to more closely resemble the bark of the tree he was hiding in. He did not want to be caught by these things.
***
The Black Major approached Jackal. "I hope someone escapes to take word back to their commander."
"Don't worry about that," Jackal answered. "I don't think we will be able to find Zartan hin his native swamp. He is too good at his job for that... and his natural camouflage will make it next to impossible for us to find him."
"Even the Kraken?"
"They are not Bloodhounds."
"Well, we will get him one day soon, in either case. I just hope he gives his commander a good enough description for the Commander to identify the Kraken."
***
Cobra Commander looked up as Zartan staggered into his throne room. Zartan was trying to stand tall and look formidable, but the strain of the previous day was obvious.
"What happened, Zartan" Cobra Commander hissed. "What happened to the army I left in your care to oversee our shared intrestess."
"They... They were all killed, Commander."
"By... things. I don't know what they were. Monsters or aliens, green with red jumpsuits, carrying tridents and nets."
"Do you really expect me to forgive you after telling me such a ridiculous story as that?"
"But Commander..."
"What, Zartan?"
"I have proof"
"You brought me a dead body to show you did more than cower in some tree?"
"No, Commander..." Zartan stammered, holding up a video tape. "They destroyed my base, but I was able to recover this security camera footage."
"And I suppose that is sure to convince me... Just as Jurassic Park made us all believe that dinosaurs still walked the Earth! Do you take me for a fool?"
"Please, Commander...."
"Very well, put it in the player."
Zartan placed the tape in a VCR, and pressed the play button. The large panel on the far wall suddenly came alive and showed several of the green creatures kicking in the door of Zartan's headquarters, and proceed to destroy every piece of equipment in sight.
The tape ran to the end, and Cobra Commander remained silent.
The tape ended.
"Commander?" Zartan asked.
Cobra Commander remained silent.
"Do you know these creatures?"
"They are called Kraken..." Cobra Commander said softly, then turned coldly towards Zartan. "Get out."
Zartan quickly retreated, leaving the Commander alone with his thoughts.
This is not possible, Cobra Commander thought to himself, Only I know the secret of the Kraken. Who else could be using them... and give them the same uniforms and equipment that I did?
He remembered the first time he had used the Kraken. He had sent them to take out a force of SAS men. They had succeeded in eliminating most of the SAS force, but had been eliminated. He had never gotten around to making another batch of them. Who else could it be? He had already killed Black Major, the only other person who knew almost as much about them as he did.
He did not have any answers... but he would get them, and it did not matter how many he had to kill to get them. It would be war.
A small holographic image appeared in front of Zartan. A communication he had been expecting, but dreading at the same time. It was Jackal, a man he had once known as Destro, before the current Destro had joined Cobra all those years ago.
"Thank you for helping me deliver my message to Destro, Zartan. Your base florida base is swarming with snakes." Jackal said.
"An unavoidable circumstance, Jackal. I've had to make a deal... in return for my health." Zartan replied.
"Where is your daughter. Zartan?"
"She is... Away at present. You cannot date her."
Jackal smiled. "I merely wanted to make sure she was safe. To reward you for helping me meet with Destro, I am giving you this warning. We are going to take care of your snake infestation."
Zartan's eyes widened in horror... "What? When?"
"As we speak, Zartan. Run for your life, if you value it. Blood for the Baron!" The screen went black.
He opened a new channel on his communications console. "Zartan to all Dreadnoks. Get out of the swamp, or to shelters now. Emergency Evacuation."
Buzzer's face appeared on the screen. "Oi, Zartan... what about the Snakes?"
"Let them fend for themselves."
Zartan's attention was drawn to the sound of machine gun fire out in the swamp. It had already begun. He glanced down at the bomb shelter entrance, thinking of taking shelter there, but then thought better of it. Now that his skin condition was cured, he would be better off in the swamp where he could hide more effectively.
***
A man stood in front of a blood colored Hiss tank, he wore a black military cut uniform, with a red cap and shoulder stripes, and a skull insignia on his chest, his entire manner spoke of a life in the military, although his face had not weathered the years very well. He was the Black Major.
He was surrounded by equally disciplined troopers dressed all in red, with red helmets with red face plates, except for the black and white eye slits. They were all well armed. Jackal himself was sitting in the cockpit of the Hiss tank.
"Our... Special Forces have already begun their assault on the Cobra forces. Soon they shall begin to try and flee the swamp. Your job is to prevent that from happening. I have marked all the known swamp exits, and a few hidden ones. Each squad is to take a Tank and stake out an exit. When you see someone attempting to flee, mow them down. There is a motorcycle gang in there in addition to Cobra. They are not the main priority, it is acceptable if some of them escape, but anyone wearing a Cobra Uniform must die. One more thing." The Black Major held up a photo of Zartan, "This man is one of Cobra's inner circle. Bring me his body as proof of the kill."
"BLOOD FOR THE BARON!!" The troops shouted, then ran to their posts. The Black Major smiled. He had been waiting for his revenge for a very, very long time, and now it was finally starting to happen.
***
Buzzer and Torch, peeked out from their hiding place.. They were suddenly glad they had opted to not take their usual way out of the swamp. A red tank was sitting there waiting for them. They did not recognize the red uniforms, but Buzzer couldn't help feeling like he should.
A few of the newer Dreadnoks staggered onto the hidden road, not seeing the tank wanting for them, and Buzzer and Torch knew better than to shout a warning. They took a stupid risk in taking the usual way out, even if it was one of the hidden exits, they would have to deal with it themselves.
The tank opened fire, and mowed the men down with machine guns. "More Blood for the Baron!" someone shouted.
"These guys is nutters," Buzzer whispered, then pulled his head back down. They would make sure they were nowhere near any tanks or men in red when they made their break from the swamp.
***
From his vantage point in the trees, Zartan had an excellent view of the fighting. Whatever it was Cobra was fighting, it wasn't human. They seemed like reptiles, wearing red swimsuits, carrying nets and tridents equipped with lasers. At range, they were an even match for the Cobra troops, but the catch was keeping them at range. The swamp was the best environment for that kind of combat, there were too many trees to get in the way, and too many places for them to hide. Plus the creatures seemed to be amphibious. They moved faster through the water than anything Zartan had ever seen before. And in hand to hand combat, the Cobra troops had no chance against the monsters. They had overwhelming strength, and were not afraid to literally bite someone's head off if they got the chance.
The green Krakens made short work of every one they came across. Shooting some with lasers, skewering others on their tridents, and simply ripping others apart after they had been ensnared in their nets.
Zartan adjusted his pigmentation to more closely resemble the bark of the tree he was hiding in. He did not want to be caught by these things.
***
The Black Major approached Jackal. "I hope someone escapes to take word back to their commander."
"Don't worry about that," Jackal answered. "I don't think we will be able to find Zartan hin his native swamp. He is too good at his job for that... and his natural camouflage will make it next to impossible for us to find him."
"Even the Kraken?"
"They are not Bloodhounds."
"Well, we will get him one day soon, in either case. I just hope he gives his commander a good enough description for the Commander to identify the Kraken."
***
Cobra Commander looked up as Zartan staggered into his throne room. Zartan was trying to stand tall and look formidable, but the strain of the previous day was obvious.
"What happened, Zartan" Cobra Commander hissed. "What happened to the army I left in your care to oversee our shared intrestess."
"They... They were all killed, Commander."
"By... things. I don't know what they were. Monsters or aliens, green with red jumpsuits, carrying tridents and nets."
"Do you really expect me to forgive you after telling me such a ridiculous story as that?"
"But Commander..."
"What, Zartan?"
"I have proof"
"You brought me a dead body to show you did more than cower in some tree?"
"No, Commander..." Zartan stammered, holding up a video tape. "They destroyed my base, but I was able to recover this security camera footage."
"And I suppose that is sure to convince me... Just as Jurassic Park made us all believe that dinosaurs still walked the Earth! Do you take me for a fool?"
"Please, Commander...."
"Very well, put it in the player."
Zartan placed the tape in a VCR, and pressed the play button. The large panel on the far wall suddenly came alive and showed several of the green creatures kicking in the door of Zartan's headquarters, and proceed to destroy every piece of equipment in sight.
The tape ran to the end, and Cobra Commander remained silent.
The tape ended.
"Commander?" Zartan asked.
Cobra Commander remained silent.
"Do you know these creatures?"
"They are called Kraken..." Cobra Commander said softly, then turned coldly towards Zartan. "Get out."
Zartan quickly retreated, leaving the Commander alone with his thoughts.
This is not possible, Cobra Commander thought to himself, Only I know the secret of the Kraken. Who else could be using them... and give them the same uniforms and equipment that I did?
He remembered the first time he had used the Kraken. He had sent them to take out a force of SAS men. They had succeeded in eliminating most of the SAS force, but had been eliminated. He had never gotten around to making another batch of them. Who else could it be? He had already killed Black Major, the only other person who knew almost as much about them as he did.
He did not have any answers... but he would get them, and it did not matter how many he had to kill to get them. It would be war.