CHAPTER 4 - SIGNS OF A CONSPIRACY
The helicopter flew over Nindamos harbor, a popular tourist attraction on the island of Numenor due to its many pristine beaches and nearly year-round sunshine. Right in the middle of the sea, it was isolated from the rest of Arda, and often served as a relaxing mid-point in peoples' travels across the world. Gandalf looked down at a helipad next to the harbor.
"That's the place." said Gandalf.
"Who are we meeting there?" asked Jeff, the pilot.
"Her name's Naeronel, and she's an associate. I can't tell you much more than that; need to know basis, et cetera."
"Aw..." groaned Jeff. "Haven't we known each other long enough?"
Gandalf smiled and shook his head.
Jeff smiled back. "Well, I was running a bit low on fuel anyway. Might as well fill 'er up while we're there."
Jeff hovered the helicopter over the landing pad and slowly let it descend.
"See that associate anywhere, G?"
"Don't call me that." said Gandalf gruffly. "No, I don't see her any... wait. There she is."
Naeronel, an elf woman with long dark hair and glasses was running through a parking lot toward the helipad, shouting something and waving frantically at them. Gandalf, puzzled, looked behind her and saw another elf woman and an Orc chasing her.
-
"She's a fast one!" said Aiwen as she and Ghashburz chased Naeronel in between a line of parked cars to the helipad.
Ghashburz looked at the approaching helicopter and grabbed Aiwen's shoulder. "Shit! Too late. Her contacts have arrived."
"Plan B." said Aiwen, drawing her Narsil.
"Terminate the target." said Ghashburz, drawing his Foehammer.
Naeronel turned around, seeing their guns drawn and jumped behind a parked car, which immediately lost all of its windows and rear-view mirrors to a hail of gunfire. Shocked tourists screamed and scattered in all directions at the sound of the gunfire.
-
"What do we do now?" Jeff said hesitantly.
Gandalf drew his Foehammer. "Take me down, I'll handle this."
"Should have known you'd say that."
Jeff let the helicopter down until it was three feet off the ground and Gandalf jumped out.
"Stay in the air where it's safe!" yelled Gandalf.
Jeff lifted into the air and Gandalf ran out firing his Foehammer at the two mysterious attackers.
-
Ghashburz and Aiwen quickly jumped out of the way into an empty parking space behind a minivan when they saw Gandalf shooting at them. A car moving into the space screeched to a stop an inch away from Aiwen.
"You almost hit me!" screamed Aiwen, putting a three-round burst into the driver.
"Calm down!" said Ghashburz. "The boss wants a clean operation."
Aiwen rolled her eyes. Ghashburz quickly pulled out a cell phone and hit a speed-dial button. "Ghash here. The mission went south. Should be easy enough to handle now but just in case, get us some backup and get us out of here ASAP!"
Ghashburz peeked around the side of the van and fired a shot at Gandalf, a perfect shot right to the center chest. It missed. "What the fuck?" said Ghashburz. Gandalf fired back at him, and he hid behind the van. "He should be dead!"
-
Gandalf wiped sweat off his brow, he had managed to deflect the bullet slightly off-course to whiz harmlessly off to his left side but it was a long time since he had used that degree of magical power and the effort had strained his powers. He wasn't sure how many times he could do it again. He raised his Foehammer in the direction of the van.
"Naeronel, I have you covered. Come out here, and stay low."
Naeronel emerged from behind the car. The helicopter flew by overhead, and started to set down in an empty space in the parking lot.
"Thanks, G!" said Naeronel. "Thought I was dead there."
"Would everyone stop calling me that?"
Naeronel ran into the helicopter when it reached the ground, and Gandalf followed after, keeping his gun trained on the van.
"Get us out of here!" said Gandalf.
Jeff nodded and started to lift the helicopter up.
-
"They're getting away!" yelled Aiwen. "This is all your fault!"
Ghashburz calmly reached into an inner coat pocket and pulled something out. "They aren't away yet."
"They're in a fucking helicopter!"
Aiwen ran out from behind the van and emptied the rest of her Narsil's magazine pointlessly in the general direction of the helicopter. Ghashburz smirked, and placed the object he had pulled out of his pocket on the barrel of his gun. It was a magnifying sight with a laser pointer. He calmly walked out beside Aiwen and aimed at the escaping helicopter. He held the gun in both hands and kept his aim steady, peering through the scope, and calculating how much he would have to lead his shot to get what he wanted. He pulled the trigger once, and the .50 caliber bullet soared through the air at a perfect trajectory, coming in contact with the connection between the helicopter and its blades.
"Let's meet them at the harbor." he said as Aiwen reloaded her Narsil.
-
"Uh oh." said Jeff.
"What's 'uh oh'?" asked Naeronel. "Pilots aren't supposed to say 'uh oh', that's a bad thing! What's happening?"
"I can't keep us steady. Something's wrong with the blades... whoa!"
The whoa! was his reaction to the sudden dip in altitude. Jeff tried as hard as he could to keep it in the air but it was going down fast.
"I'm gonna try for a water landing. Brace yourselves!"
Naeronel screamed and covered her head. Gandalf held onto the window frame. The helicopter took a dive and hit the water between two boats docked at the harbor. They swam out of the helicopter and climbed up onto the dock as it sank.
"That was a close one." said Naeronel.
Suddenly a burst of automatic gunfire tore up the dock around their feet, sending wood splinters into the air. Gandalf quickly whipped around to the source and took a shot, hitting one of the shooters.
-
Ghashburz was taken off his feet by the force of the bullet impact in his chest.
"No!" screamed Aiwen, momentarily losing sight of their goal.
Ghashburz lay on the ground and muttered orcish swear words under his breath.
"Are you all right?" asked Aiwen.
"Fucking bullets hurt, even with a Mithril vest on." he said, hitting his chest. He crawled to his feet and lurched toward the dock, firing another shot that should have killed the old man with the beard but didn't for some reason. Maybe a new type of bullet-proof vest he hadn't heard of yet.
-
Feeling incredibly drained from the last deflected bullet, Gandalf started to look for an escape route. He saw a jet-ski docked a few feet down.
"Follow me!" he said.
He ran forward, keeping cover fire on the entrance to the harbor where their assailants were shooting from. He jumped onto the jet-ski and waved at the others to come on with him. He held his hand over the ignition and focused hard. He turned his hand, and the lock turned with it, starting the engine. They pulled away, bullets splashing in the water behind them.
-
Ghashburz grimaced as the jet-ski pulled behind a cruise ship, out of their sight.
"What else can go wrong?" he groaned.
He heard a voice behind him. "Harbor security! Throw your weapons down and put your hands up."
They both dropped their weapons and raised their hands into the air. Ghashburz quickly glanced over his shoulder. Three security guards, all armed. Ghashburz turned to look at Aiwen. She smiled. She knew what he was thinking.
"Get down on the ground! Do it now!"
They both kneeled to the ground and started to pitch forward. At that moment Ghashburz quickly reached into his ankle holster and pulled out his backup piece. The instant he grabbed the Sting he began to roll on his side. One roll. One shot. Another roll. Another shot. One last roll into a final shot and all three security guards were sprawled on the pavement. Just then a limousine squealed to a stop beside them. The back door opened, they climbed in, and the limo sped off.
The helicopter flew over Nindamos harbor, a popular tourist attraction on the island of Numenor due to its many pristine beaches and nearly year-round sunshine. Right in the middle of the sea, it was isolated from the rest of Arda, and often served as a relaxing mid-point in peoples' travels across the world. Gandalf looked down at a helipad next to the harbor.
"That's the place." said Gandalf.
"Who are we meeting there?" asked Jeff, the pilot.
"Her name's Naeronel, and she's an associate. I can't tell you much more than that; need to know basis, et cetera."
"Aw..." groaned Jeff. "Haven't we known each other long enough?"
Gandalf smiled and shook his head.
Jeff smiled back. "Well, I was running a bit low on fuel anyway. Might as well fill 'er up while we're there."
Jeff hovered the helicopter over the landing pad and slowly let it descend.
"See that associate anywhere, G?"
"Don't call me that." said Gandalf gruffly. "No, I don't see her any... wait. There she is."
Naeronel, an elf woman with long dark hair and glasses was running through a parking lot toward the helipad, shouting something and waving frantically at them. Gandalf, puzzled, looked behind her and saw another elf woman and an Orc chasing her.
-
"She's a fast one!" said Aiwen as she and Ghashburz chased Naeronel in between a line of parked cars to the helipad.
Ghashburz looked at the approaching helicopter and grabbed Aiwen's shoulder. "Shit! Too late. Her contacts have arrived."
"Plan B." said Aiwen, drawing her Narsil.
"Terminate the target." said Ghashburz, drawing his Foehammer.
Naeronel turned around, seeing their guns drawn and jumped behind a parked car, which immediately lost all of its windows and rear-view mirrors to a hail of gunfire. Shocked tourists screamed and scattered in all directions at the sound of the gunfire.
-
"What do we do now?" Jeff said hesitantly.
Gandalf drew his Foehammer. "Take me down, I'll handle this."
"Should have known you'd say that."
Jeff let the helicopter down until it was three feet off the ground and Gandalf jumped out.
"Stay in the air where it's safe!" yelled Gandalf.
Jeff lifted into the air and Gandalf ran out firing his Foehammer at the two mysterious attackers.
-
Ghashburz and Aiwen quickly jumped out of the way into an empty parking space behind a minivan when they saw Gandalf shooting at them. A car moving into the space screeched to a stop an inch away from Aiwen.
"You almost hit me!" screamed Aiwen, putting a three-round burst into the driver.
"Calm down!" said Ghashburz. "The boss wants a clean operation."
Aiwen rolled her eyes. Ghashburz quickly pulled out a cell phone and hit a speed-dial button. "Ghash here. The mission went south. Should be easy enough to handle now but just in case, get us some backup and get us out of here ASAP!"
Ghashburz peeked around the side of the van and fired a shot at Gandalf, a perfect shot right to the center chest. It missed. "What the fuck?" said Ghashburz. Gandalf fired back at him, and he hid behind the van. "He should be dead!"
-
Gandalf wiped sweat off his brow, he had managed to deflect the bullet slightly off-course to whiz harmlessly off to his left side but it was a long time since he had used that degree of magical power and the effort had strained his powers. He wasn't sure how many times he could do it again. He raised his Foehammer in the direction of the van.
"Naeronel, I have you covered. Come out here, and stay low."
Naeronel emerged from behind the car. The helicopter flew by overhead, and started to set down in an empty space in the parking lot.
"Thanks, G!" said Naeronel. "Thought I was dead there."
"Would everyone stop calling me that?"
Naeronel ran into the helicopter when it reached the ground, and Gandalf followed after, keeping his gun trained on the van.
"Get us out of here!" said Gandalf.
Jeff nodded and started to lift the helicopter up.
-
"They're getting away!" yelled Aiwen. "This is all your fault!"
Ghashburz calmly reached into an inner coat pocket and pulled something out. "They aren't away yet."
"They're in a fucking helicopter!"
Aiwen ran out from behind the van and emptied the rest of her Narsil's magazine pointlessly in the general direction of the helicopter. Ghashburz smirked, and placed the object he had pulled out of his pocket on the barrel of his gun. It was a magnifying sight with a laser pointer. He calmly walked out beside Aiwen and aimed at the escaping helicopter. He held the gun in both hands and kept his aim steady, peering through the scope, and calculating how much he would have to lead his shot to get what he wanted. He pulled the trigger once, and the .50 caliber bullet soared through the air at a perfect trajectory, coming in contact with the connection between the helicopter and its blades.
"Let's meet them at the harbor." he said as Aiwen reloaded her Narsil.
-
"Uh oh." said Jeff.
"What's 'uh oh'?" asked Naeronel. "Pilots aren't supposed to say 'uh oh', that's a bad thing! What's happening?"
"I can't keep us steady. Something's wrong with the blades... whoa!"
The whoa! was his reaction to the sudden dip in altitude. Jeff tried as hard as he could to keep it in the air but it was going down fast.
"I'm gonna try for a water landing. Brace yourselves!"
Naeronel screamed and covered her head. Gandalf held onto the window frame. The helicopter took a dive and hit the water between two boats docked at the harbor. They swam out of the helicopter and climbed up onto the dock as it sank.
"That was a close one." said Naeronel.
Suddenly a burst of automatic gunfire tore up the dock around their feet, sending wood splinters into the air. Gandalf quickly whipped around to the source and took a shot, hitting one of the shooters.
-
Ghashburz was taken off his feet by the force of the bullet impact in his chest.
"No!" screamed Aiwen, momentarily losing sight of their goal.
Ghashburz lay on the ground and muttered orcish swear words under his breath.
"Are you all right?" asked Aiwen.
"Fucking bullets hurt, even with a Mithril vest on." he said, hitting his chest. He crawled to his feet and lurched toward the dock, firing another shot that should have killed the old man with the beard but didn't for some reason. Maybe a new type of bullet-proof vest he hadn't heard of yet.
-
Feeling incredibly drained from the last deflected bullet, Gandalf started to look for an escape route. He saw a jet-ski docked a few feet down.
"Follow me!" he said.
He ran forward, keeping cover fire on the entrance to the harbor where their assailants were shooting from. He jumped onto the jet-ski and waved at the others to come on with him. He held his hand over the ignition and focused hard. He turned his hand, and the lock turned with it, starting the engine. They pulled away, bullets splashing in the water behind them.
-
Ghashburz grimaced as the jet-ski pulled behind a cruise ship, out of their sight.
"What else can go wrong?" he groaned.
He heard a voice behind him. "Harbor security! Throw your weapons down and put your hands up."
They both dropped their weapons and raised their hands into the air. Ghashburz quickly glanced over his shoulder. Three security guards, all armed. Ghashburz turned to look at Aiwen. She smiled. She knew what he was thinking.
"Get down on the ground! Do it now!"
They both kneeled to the ground and started to pitch forward. At that moment Ghashburz quickly reached into his ankle holster and pulled out his backup piece. The instant he grabbed the Sting he began to roll on his side. One roll. One shot. Another roll. Another shot. One last roll into a final shot and all three security guards were sprawled on the pavement. Just then a limousine squealed to a stop beside them. The back door opened, they climbed in, and the limo sped off.