42
God must have said, "Let there be light!"—
—A spectacular ball of light, floating high above her in the sky, so bright for a split-second that it turned that endless field of baby blue white! —
—And boy there was light!
Utter silence swept over the battlefield in the violent, trembling wake of the light, pushing everybody away a few feet the moment it appeared. All eyes were on it - and shunned it instantaneously; it was so powerful, so overwhelming as though God had finally revealed himself to the masses.
But… it wasn't Him; it couldn't be Him! Angels were nowhere; the heavenly armies of the most high were nowhere to be seen! That light! It could have cared less or not at all! It cared not if anyone was hurt, would not shed a tear if a sparrow fell. No, it had shouted at her - at everyone when it appeared. It glared down upon her hotly, grinning at her viciously with a bright and fiery maw!
Drazen wasn't the only demon present, it seemed.
"What the hell?" Ron was aghast, his mouth, his eyes open so wide that Kim was waiting for him to melt, Raiders of the Lost Ark style. "What the hell's THAT?"
Sudden, certain familiarity swept over her, a tickle tingling throughout her body as though she knew what it was all along.
Her eyes nearly went as wide as Ron's.
"Is that what I think it is…?"
"Gladius!" Tara exclaimed. "It launched!"
"This is sure as HELL is not the place to be!" Ron exclaimed.
"Maybe it is…!" She couldn't help but let her eyes wander for the intended target. "Look!"
All friendly eyes planted on the overgrown tank… that shivering, rattling tank! The tank was trembling, quaking in its large tracks, the guns of the turrets bouncing aimlessly, erratically, violently while the cannons quivered only gently. Softly at first, of course, then intensifying, rattling stronger and stronger before the whole valley was enveloped by the noise. The weapon was practically hopping off the ground in a full-blown seizure!
"The FUCK, MAN?" the megaphones shouted demandingly in a Slavic accent.
"I don't know!" the phones exclaimed in more of a proper tone. "The controls are down!"
"WHAT?" the Slavic shouted.
"This is rich!" Kim couldn't help a smirk cutting across her face sharply. Her arms folded smugly. "Where's the popcorn when you need it?"
Electrical arcs were beautiful in their own right; so quick, so raw, so pure, jumping, hopping with many others from nameless point to nameless point on the weapon's shell! Not even a moment had passed before the whole infrastructure was engulfed in paper-thin, jagged white stripes.
"ABNORMAL POWER CASSCADE RUNNING THROUGHOUT THE SYSTEM!" the phones practically screamed like a Semitic. "I can't shut it down - I CAN'T SHUT ANYTHING DOWN!"
"DAVID!" it shouted like a Slavic again. "WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO?"
"SHIT!" it exclaimed like a Semitic. "It's TOO LATE! POWER LEVELS ARE AT CRITICAL! FUEL AND OIL TANKS ARE OVERHEATING!"
"WHAT?" it came like the Slavic.
"I believe it means we're about to go up, Major!" It elaborated properly. "Really -up-!"
"Aw man…!" the digitized voice whined. "Not again—!"
A flash of blinding light - and she was crunched, head bouncing against the firm dashboard. An explosion blossomed out from the weapon's stern in a thunderous clap - then another one - then another - and another! Swollen hot, blazing buds on the weapon blossomed almost simultaneously, the infrastructure consumed, engulfed by many, flaming petals. Embers like pollen, disappearing high into the sky never to been seen again.
Though the fires of his dark eternity lapped for him through the glass, it didn't stop Drazen from cursing out his final word.
"POSSIBLE!" The Slavic screamed! It was a dream come true when the glass gave way, the flames lapping, clawing inside for the fresh meat—!
And so the horrible screams began. Music to her ears, it was, as much as her belly churned heavily at the thought. Drazen was gone - he was finally gone! One less maniac was off the planet, off the hair trigger of a nuclear holocaust. The world was once again safe… for now.
"Is it over…?" Tara asked harmlessly enough, her hands practically dead weight in the rearview, slipping off the top of her head and back to her sides. "Is he finally gone?"
"Don't know - don't care!" She shook her head. "Let's head for the approaching convoy before the VSA goes for target practice!"
"Good point!" Tara replied.
"Heard that!" Ron nodded. "Come on, Robin! Let's go already!"
"Yes." Robin had a faint smile on her face, dark eyes calmed, disappearing behind those dark lids as the girl nodded. "If that is what you wish."
"I'd wish for three more wishes, but I can't." Ron replied needlessly, tactlessly. Robin blinked. Kim's brow kinked typically, eyes taking a lap. "I lost my magic lamp back in the Jordan Valley!"
"The hell…?" Yune was at a loss.
"Huh…?" So was Tara.
She sighed. It was a sign! When Ron joked pointlessly, all was right with the world.
"Forget him." She said.
"That's cold, KP." Ron huffed slightly.
She sniggered gently. "Come on, Robin. Let's go home!"
"Yes ma'am." The dark girl nodded while she put Sadie into gear.
"Oh yeah!" Ron cheered, his black glove punch its way into her view of the rearview mirror. "Party at Rob's place! Uh-HUH! OH YEAH! Party over here – WHOOP - WHOOP! Party over there - WHOOP - WHOOP! Uh - do the robot! DO THE ROBOT!"
"Do the monkey!" Yune said jovially.
Brown, mirrored eyes went wide, sweat beading just below the long, messy bangs. The whole car erupted in laughter when the messy blond nearly jumped overboard.
"Not FUNNY!" Ron huffed strongly.
"YEAH…!" His buddy hopped to his master's defense.
"Oh really?" Yune replied smartly as he came out of a hearty chuckle. "Then why am I laughing?"
"Because you people are sick…" quote the Ron-Man typically, "and - WRONG!"
An utter return to normalcy; Kim nodded comfortably at the fact.
Yes indeed…. -
XXX
Within Robin's spacious apartment, silence grew fat, so swollen Kim wasn't sure if her eardrums had popped or not. "No man is an island to himself"; she had that heard once before, something that her ears had managed to catch out of the stale air in between powernaps back in literature class. Yet everybody around could have fooled her, the team splitting off into their individual selves when they had stepped foot into the apartment.
Yune took to the couch rather uneasily, as anxious as his leg, bouncing hyperactively like he had too much coffee. The back half of his rump he planted on the edge of the cushion as he hunched into himself, elbows pressed against the knees, brown eyes staring blankly at the wall while his hands clenched around his jaw.
Ron was bored, practically fuming it out his wide-open maw, fouling his side of the couch before he let it close. She couldn't help but shudder. His lids hid half of his chocolate eyes. They were down at half-mast, lashes brushing against each other intermittently. He unwittingly exposed that maw again, breathing out a shallow yawn before gravity pulled his skull down upon the jaw once again.
Ron's little buddy followed suit, the buckteeth parallel with the ground as the rodent took in his little puff of air. Cute it was, in that strange sort of way. Why? She didn't know.
Tara had flattened herself against the plush carpet; her dark swathed limbs wide apart like some sort famous sketch. The black battle-dress-uniform a sharp contrast against the cream floor, sharper yet against the girl's fine skin, fine hair. Amazing how she lasted in the sun like that, really. It was Yune's old BDU from what she'd heard in passing; it must have protected her. Hardly any beads of sweat glistening on her smooth crown, not a single fresh scratch sliced into her face. Love conquers all indeed.
And Kim was hunched over her legs in a tailor's position, simply at a loss. She rubbed her palms together - simply to occupy them, the heat at the heels of her thumbs blossoming out only a few centimeters. She might as well have had them gone straight and had them drive their way up her rump; there was nothing to do. Yet her belly continued to churn restlessly, worry a splinter, poking hauntingly at her mind like she had forgotten something!
"But what…?" she asked herself aloud.
"But what, friend?" Robin's voice from out the adjacent hallway, the African herself following it into the main room a second later. "What is troubling you? You should be happy - -we- should be happy! We have won! Drazen is gone!"
"But why doesn't it feel like a victory?" she asked back, rocking gently on her butt.
"Me neither." Tara managed to yank herself upright only to hunch over her incoming legs, an occupied sock slipping into the wrinkly crook of the other leg. "The metal-head's gone, I know - but—! Oh… I don't know anymore! It's like it should be over, but I just have a feeling that it's not!"
"That's because it's never over, T." Yune shook his head. "Keep reaching for that rainbow. Because when you think the worse is behind you, fate comes knocking!"
A pair of his tanned knuckles grinding into the lighter palm was the exclamation point.
"She'll knock hard!" The Asian exclaimed. "So hard it'll be like you've been abducted by aliens! Hell's breaking loose around you, and like a sucker - you won't know what the hell happened!"
"Life in the North Korean Army and The Family's rubbed off on you, Yune." Ron yawned again, folding his arms behind his head confidently. "I wouldn't get too worked up. Don't get me wrong - we'll still keep our guard up! But if something were to arise - which is very likely - we're just going to have to deal with it."
"Ronald is right, you know." Robin nodded.
"And you guys' time with me has rubbed off on you too, it seems." Yune shook his head in the midst of a smirk. "I've hardly seen you act this rational before. Why start now, pray-tell?"
"Heck, I don't know." Ron shrugged back. "I wouldn't know where to start or what to say."
"'Where to start' implies knowledge, Ron." Yune rebutted lightly. "Knowledge is knowledge, Ron, no matter how great or small it is. Besides, what else have we got to do today?"
"Well, I do not—" Robin shrugged needlessly.
"Don't answer." Tara replied. "Rhetorical question."
"Oh." The dark girl blinked. "Right. Of course."
"I'm not exactly sure how to say this." Ron shook his head. "It's kind of hard to put into words."
"It's okay, Ron." She said. "Take your time. Just do your best, and you'll be fine."
"I know." The blond sheepishly nodded. "I don't know what to say, really. It's hard to put into words. But… I guess coming here made me realize something, something that I know has been prodding at me for some time now, though I usually shrug it off - put it off till tomorrow and the sort."
"Yeah?" she asked. "And that is… what?"
"It's like what I told you before." He shrugged. "Just after we escaped Organ Grinder. It was time for me to grow up, Kim, to be a man, to start finding my purpose in life. I couldn't sit by any longer and watch the world pass me by from the sidelines. I didn't want to run away anymore and get in the way.
"Kim, when you were dragged to the Wailing Wall and thrown at the foot, ready for the end, that was the moment it hit me - kind of like the rock that grazed me on the backside while the driver did 60! You simply can't wait for life and purpose to find you. Equally, you can't go out and expect to make it happen. Nope, that's impossible. You'll only fail, return back from your quest jaded and cynical. But still, you at least have to try to."
"But why?" Tara blinked. "What good would that do? If all is for nothing, chasing the wind and all that - then why even bother? It's just a giant paradox!"
"Because if you were to take the initiative at least, Tara, then the good Lord can help you see it through!" Robin said. "We are not perfect, far from it. Though humans were once, Adam and Eve fashioned perfectly by His hands, they have fallen - -we- fell by the exercise of our own free will. He does not expect us to finish the race unscathed, to fight the good fight with out a scratch. Yet as long as we love Him so much to pursue his will, He will help us become what He wishes us to be… what we truly want to be.
"When Shia died, I did not know what to do." Kim was taken aback, batting her eyes in bewilderment. "My heart was practically torn from my chest, ripped into little pieces that no matter how hard I tried, they wouldn't come together again! Honestly I can tell you, my friends, that I was truly lost. Never before had I felt so cold and alone. As I said, I was not sure what I should have done, whether to stay the path or to throw it all away in the name of vengeance. But I realized something, something that I had known since I was a little girl, back in Ethiopia. When you put that gun in my hands, Tara, it drove it home for me."
She blinked again. "What the heck did I miss…?"
"I realized that I am never alone." Robin dismissed her altogether. Surprising yes, but not completely unexpected. "Though the darkness may seem to consume me, I have come too far, seen so many terrible and wonderful things to know that all is not for nothing! Moments after Shia's demise, I felt… peace. Peace of mind, peace of heart - the exact opposite of what one would think! It was like I was back in my home village, back in my father's arms once again. I have never felt such love before. For that fleeting moment I was… content!"
"Robin…." She brushed a hand swiftly through her hair. "What are you saying…?"
"The Lord, Kimberly." Robin smiled brilliantly, eyes sparkling in the natural light with such genuine brilliancy. Despite the girl's words, it had been such a long time since she had seen someone with such clear eyes. "The Lord…."
Her brow kinked. "What…?"
"Are you sure you're Jewish, Robin?" Tara looked at her incredulously. "Seriously?"
"Yes." The dark girl affirmed with a nod. "My mother was Jewish, and so was her mother, and so was her mother, and so on and so forth. Besides, friend, my father has been teaching us Torah, and my brother Talmud since we were old enough to remember. Why do you ask?"
"Because, Robin, of what you said." With a twist at the waist, Tara turned her body up onto her knees. "I'm telling you that had to be one of the most Christian things I have ever heard!"
"Here-here!" Ron nodded.
"Are you really that surprised, Tara?" Yune asked.
"Did you listen to what she just said, Yune?" Tara exclaimed pointedly. "Hell yeah - I'm surprised! Next thing I know, I could be listening to the Grand -Mufti- sing -Havah Negila-!"
Robin laughed heartily, practically keeling over. Ron let out an amused snort.
"That's a sight to see…!" Ron said cynically.
"Truly, that would." Robin unrolled her back. "And very funny too, I might add!"
"It's not surprising really, Tara." Yune said simply. "When you think about it. For Paul said in the book of Romans, 'for there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him.'"
"Where in Romans does it say that?" the blonde asked.
"Tenth chapter, twelfth verse." The Asian nodded back. "Since you asked, after all. Helps if you actually read it, you know."
"Oh." Those two aquamarines blinked. "Right."
From behind her came a sturdy tapping, the typical sound of someone rapping at the front door. All eyes in the apartment were already ahead of Robin, staring past her just as the girl turned for it. At his waist, the Korean unfolded himself, pushing to his feet quickly. Tanned fingers disappeared behind the grip of his Daewoo, and there was subtle scrape when he slipped it free of the holster. She took the hint, taking a stand while Tara simply blinked at her from her seat.
Another knocking staccato came from the door. Robin probably frowned over the flat moan tickling her throat.
"I am coming." The girl called. "I am coming! Patience!"
Robin was at the door when she turned around, a cream limb trained on the door while the deadbolt softly clicked with the back-flick of the lock. The limb dropped several inches to the doorknob, its sheen dulled by the girl's hand, rattling when she put it to work. Hinges smoothly, silently guided the door while Robin pulled it ajar.
"Yes?" The girl asked the owner of that full coif, blonde locks feathery and full of body. "May I help you?"
She should have known.
"Sorry for troubling you, ma'am." The Blondie said. "I was wondering if a mister Yune Bin-Mok was with you?"
"I… am sorry, miss." Robin replied hesitantly like an amateur, the shaking of her head the crowning touch. "But there is no one here by that name."
"Actually there is, Robin." Yune called, and he simply let the pistol drop back into the holster. "It's okay. She practically our boss."
"Damn straight, I am!" Everybody's favorite tanned Barbie called back as she escorted herself inside. Hershel was just as she had remembered, brown business jacket wrapped around a white button-down shirt loosely, hem of the brown skirt an inch above the knees with her feet crammed into a pair of simple pumps. "I run these guys! I run -all- these guys, give them orders, and I expect them to turn in a perfect performance!"
She caught the woman's eyes practically crossing as she let her own take a lap around her head.
"Good to see you too, Ariel." She said cynically. "It's so nice to see that we're so appreciated, especially by the good folks over at Mossad!"
"Kimberly!" Hershel's gasp was short, too short for her taste. "You're alive?"
"What?" she laughed back. "And miss the look on your face? Please…! Even with Drazen's torture, I wouldn't miss that for the world!"
"But…!" The Barbie's eyes boggled, overwhelmed completely! "How…?"
"Well, to put a long story short." She shrugged. "Ron came in, kicked ass, and took names later! And while I'm at it, you guys at Mossad don't have to worry about Organ Grinder, the siege weapon, or Drazen anymore! Mission accomplished, if I do say so myself."
"So Team Possible managed to pull out the impossible after all." Hershel replied seriously... for once, seemingly. "That is great news."
"What's up, Hershel?" She folded her arms loosely. "No retort? No comeback? Man, things must have changed since I've been gone."
"Pretty much, yeah." Hershel swung her arms around her back, keeping them there. "Forgive me if I don't jump for joy. Even though the immediate threat is over, I still got more on my plate than I can digest."
"The Temple Mount?" Yune asked.
"Exactly." She nodded. "It's close to Noon. This day's only halfway through. The trump card may have worked, but that EMP over Armageddon practically knocked the country senseless, even the systems we'd bother to harden. We're pretty much dead in the water."
"EMP?" she asked.
"Of course." A smirk waned on the woman's face. "You honestly didn't think that blast over Megiddo was the work of the supernatural did you?"
"For a minute, we did!" It was Ron's time to jump up. "For a minute, I thought the Messiah had finally returned!"
"Yes!" Robin agreed wholeheartedly, her hand a dark spade on her cream chest. "I too felt my heart leap for joy when I had managed to catch a glimpse of that light! I had thought He had finally arrived, but I was wrong. How dare you lift my hopes up for nothing!"
"Faith really isn't an indulgence of mine." Hershel dismissed with a solemn shake of her head. "In this business, there are no miracles or the supernatural. Just cutting edge technology and the tools we need to fight and win. And I employed one of those tools today, foolishly used it too. Certain parties aren't happy with Israel about that right now, its unauthorized access and use."
Kim felt her heart push its way up her chest. "Do you mean—?"
"Yes." The woman nodded. "Gladius. What you saw back at the valley was Gladius."
Everything went blurry, a small ache pulsing just behind her eyes when they went cross. "How did—?"
"It's a long story and I don't have time for it." Ariel replied. "All you need to know is that your country's in an uproar! I wouldn't be surprised if they were thinking about deploying an occupation force right about now. Don't forget about our 'friendly' neighbors watching us with an eager eye. With essential communications down and a hearty chunk of the ground forces cleaning up Drazen's mess, we're in no shape for any confrontation!"
"Don't lose your cool, Hershel." Yune too folded his arms. "There's still the ceremony today."
"He's right, Ms. Hershel!" Tara finally managed to plant her feet firmly underneath her. "You can use that to your advantage somehow!"
Tanned, spidery fingers let out a snap!
"Oh - of course!" Hershel's eyes lit up. "I spaced the delegates! Damn - how the hell could I forget about that damn ambassador? They've been here for about a few weeks now."
"See?" Tara brightened too. "All's not lost! Take them around the country, show them where that Drazen punk got barbequed, and all will be right with the world!"
Yune nodded. "With Drazen's body in US hands, I'm sure you'll get all the security you need till you get your networks up and running again."
Hershel let her arms flop down at her sides, letting out a hearty laugh. "I wondered why I didn't have you detained, and now I know!"
"Of course!" Ron said. "Who'd else be your voice of reason?"
"Right." The woman shrugged. "This line of work will get to you, on that you can trust me. You'll become so engrossed, so caught up in the drama that even a pin-drop can irk you the wrong way."
"That's how you know when to take a break." Ron replied. "Like I tried to tell Kim, it's okay to say no. Try it with me now! Just repeat after me. -No…! -"
"No…!" It came out like a moan from the little pink rat that aptly poked his head out of the makeshift burrow. "Huh - ha!"
"I should try that more often." The woman nodded.
"So what are you going to do now, friend?" Robin asked. "Go back to your work?"
"I should, really." Hershel shrugged. "I actually came here to engage in a debriefing and a scolding for insubordination, but…. Hell - what's the point anymore? We'll do it later, when things aren't so shaky. On behalf of Mossad and the Israeli government, I thank you for your services. You've done good work, Team Possible. Don't let any -shmuck- or armchair general tell you different, okay?"
"Agreed." Replied everyone - at once! She sucked in a breath; her lips parted habitually, and her favorite word—!
—"JINX! You owe me a soda! All of you!"—
—Came out of the wrong mouth! Ron smiled triumphantly, punching a fist in the air victoriously before he pumped it back down to his side.
"Boo-yah!" Ron shouted proudly. "Ron-Factor's in the house!"
"So I see." She had just caught the woman rolling her eyes while she turned for the door. "Well, you all take care. I'm heading back to the office. Be assured when commercial flights resume that you'll be the first ones out of the country."
"Wait, Ms. Hershel." Robin held out a hand. "What about me?"
"You, Ms. Ata?" Hershel asked. The whites of Robin's eyes grew quickly. "Why looked surprised? You know I'm with Mossad."
"How—?" Robin blinked. "I did not give you my family name!"
"When you're as close to the VSA like you, Ms. Ata, it's my job to know." Hershel said.
"Oh…." Robin stuffed her hands into the pockets of her sweats. "So…?"
"So what?" Hershel asked. "Something you want to ask?"
"Yes." The dark girl nodded. "What must I do for you, for the country?"
"Robin…?" She blinked. "What're you…?"
"You mean about Mr. Bonnet?" the woman said it more like a statement than a question. "About his death, right?"
"Yes, Ms. Hershel." Robin nodded solemnly. "That is exactly what I meant. What must I do to repay my debt to the country?"
"Don't worry about it." Hershel shook her head. "You already have."
"I did?" Robin batted her dark eyes. It was like watching a strobe light, seeing the whites of her eyes flicker with every blink. "How do you mean?"
"Robin Ata." Gentle clacks of falling heels followed the woman as she walked up to the girl. Clasped tanned hands were like mud on the cream shoulders. The blonde mane sank a few inches between the stiff brown shoulders when the woman peered into the girl's eyes. "You went above and beyond the call of duty. When Possible over there was captured, you took these people in when no one else would. You took care of them, put a roof over their heads and gave them a good meal or two. You even put your own life on the line for them! That's probably more than what my superiors would have had done for them. Our people, our country - this damn planet needs more people like you. Israel's proud of you, Robin Ata. So relax and enjoy life."
All was quiet; Robin was speechless. A pregnant silence filled the room between them while Robin drank in what the woman had said. Hershel being nice; where was a camera when you needed it?
"Besides," those stiff brown shoulders perked briefly, "the police have their hands full at the moment. And with a little disinformation from me, they'll never put two-and-two together. I'll guarantee it."
"I do not know what to say." Robin said softly. "Thank you ever so much."
"You are welcome, Ms. Ata." Hershel nodded. "Israel's honored to have you as a citizen. And before you ask, you guys, I'll see what I can do about your Webmaster. I have some contacts within the Department of Justice, though it takes a damn crane to pull those strings."
"Thanks, Hershel." She smiled warmly. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." The woman straightened herself before she strolled for the door. "And don't worry about what you've procured. I send someone later to pick them up. Just have them ready."
The knob rattled, the door swung open, and Hershel soon became another shape through the passageway. The clicks of heels were the only clue to her presence, a steady decrescendo before they were overwhelmed completely, lost in the breeze. Despite the regional instability, the moving air was quite relaxing. It didn't care. So soft it was on her skin, running briskly through her hair. Robin's tight ponytail quivered too in the wind before she had the sensibility to shut the door.
"Well…." Yune's tanned brow was perked when she turned around. "What now?"
"I don't know." Tara shrugged back. "Eat? I guess we could play 'Stratagories' or something."
"'Stratagories'?"" Robin blinked.
"Heck yeah!" the boy pumped his fist in the air. "'Stratagories'! The best game ever made! Boo-yah!"
Kim sighed dismissively, throwing her hands into the air. Déjà vu, it surely was: Florida all over again.
"I call the race car."
XXX
Eli was surprised.
He was alive! The powers that be had shown mercy on him, shielding him and another from the consuming flames, lapping hungrily for them. Half of the control room had collapsed, a cascade of sheet metal, pipes, and wire falling down upon the Major's battered chair like rocks. He and another had tumbled back into the right side - the correct side, it was. The rather robust pile of debris had shielded them from the fire!
All but one, that is; that poor unlucky soul had caught the brunt of it, he was sure. The imploding glass must have slapped him senseless while the fire consumed him, chewing him up with hot, ragged teeth before it spat out the charred pulp. That scream! It was still ringing in his ears, so hauntingly, so -painfully-! The poor guy, he was so young, so ready to meet his destiny when they stormed that stolen rock. But now that could never be.
So gross…. -
He couldn't look at that crisp, blackened pile for long when they had blasted through the rubble. The guy truly, literally was but a shadow of his former self.
It was times like these that showed you who your friends, your comrades really were. Most of the government forces had long since left with the rest of the VSA, hand in handcuffs, most certainly. Lots of guns, TAR-21s were strewn about, littering the ground; the Victims' Separatist Army had simply dropped them. Their hands had stretched for the clouds just like The Family after old man Drazen got his bucket kicked. Barely a sound of discord had siphoned through the rubble.
Those traitors! He'd show them! No one deserts the VSA without a mark to show for it! A scar, it would be, infused with such power to remind them that their deceit, their betrayal would never be lived down! Oh, it would be delicious!
"What's going on, Eli?" the other survivor asked. "What can you see?"
"Nothing." His glove went silky smooth through his slicked back hair. "There's nothing. Just a truckload of weapons sitting on the ground, and probably a convoy's worth of empty hummers behind us. There was a four-man team of IDF on guard duty, but I took care of them. This man has still got it, I tell you. I took the liberty of hiding the bodies as well, just to be safe."
"I don't think you had to do that, Eli." Plodding footfalls behind him were a crescendo. "But I guess it's unavoidable."
"Indeed." He nodded. "We would've ended up like this charred pile!"
"What about the package?" the other man asked. "Did we lose that in the explosion?"
"No, I don't think so." He replied. "I remember seeing it by the back wall shortly after the explosion. It should be there if you hadn't moved it."
"Good." The man replied. "It should be a nice present for our hosts. Can't wait to see the looks on their faces when we practically hand them back their own bomb. A shame they won't know about it till later. -Way- later that is! And by then it'll be too late!"
"You're serious about going through with the plan?" He asked.
"Hell!" the man replied. "We've come too far to turn back now. The Major's dead, the body's too burnt for anybody to tell the difference. That should keep the authorities happy till an autopsy, but that won't be for a while. I even have his gun right here!"
"Of course you do—"
From the steel floor came a loud -BANG- and the following screech scratched his ears before something touched his boot. A heavy something, it was, just by the way it solidly pushed into his foot. An UZI occupied the floor at his foot, a full scale UZI at that, the fore-grip was pressed against his thick sole. It made slow, lopsided circles quite loudly on the floor when he kicked it by the cooked heap.
"Ah… here's that little gizmo!" the survivor exclaimed with a huff. "In the assault pack, just like I remember it. Come on, 2nd Lieutenant. We've got ourselves a little show to catch!"
"You got it."
There was a firm, stern drone growling from behind him.
"Forgetting something?" the guy asked.
"My apologies…." He sighed. "Major Drazen."
"And don't you forget it!"