[Location Classified], [Date Classified], 0000 AT
The stage was set.
In the middle, a lone group of buildings lost in the forest. On the right, a group of shadows quickly but discreetly progressing towards the small walls surrounding the facility. The only lightning of this strange play was the white and dim light of the midnight moon, yet they were seeing everything. Not only was it thanks to their night vision googles, but also to the small drone flying overhead at an altitude high enough to make its buzzing sound inaudible.
The group of soldiers quickly reached the wall on each side of the facility. Sergei, that had been leading the group, made some hand signals, and the shadows split in two groups. The first one, still lead by Sergei, headed for the main entry while the other had for target a point where the wall was low enough for a man to climb over.
Everything was happening without a single word being spoken. The only sound that one could hear were the soft steps of the operators, but the grass was acting like a cushion, make it even harder to hear.
When Sergei reached the corner of the stone wall, he immediately stopped, raising his left fist in the air at the level of his head. Behind him, the small file of men that had been following him also stopped, their gun still at the ready for anything unexpected.
« Team one at point Alpha. I repeat, team one at point Alpha. » he simply whispered in the small microphone integrated in his helmet.
« Copy team one, replied a voice. Stay on stand by for team two. »
Sergei slightly leaned forward, his look turned towards where the main entry was. As expected, there was a man sitting on a small chair, looking boringly into the flames of the small campfire that was in front of him. He was really close, but if you had to take the shot, you would have to completely reveal yourself and risk being detected.
« Team one, we have a tango at the gate. »
« Copy. Team two is at point Bravo and the drone doesn't give any other target outside the buildings. All, remain on standby for signal. »
There was no reason to ask why they had to wait longer, as only a few second later the guard fell down of his chair, his torso suddenly bursting red.
« Move. » ordered the voice through the radio, and immediately, all the operators returned to their objectives.
Only a few steps were needed to reach where the man's body had fallen, just in front of the cart-sized opening in the wall that was used as the entry of the facility.
Again, Sergei stopped at the corner, waiting for the rest of his team to stack up behind him. When he felt two light taps on his shoulder, he immediately exited his cover and headed inside the facility, towards the main building. Now was the moment where nothing could be stopped.
As he was walking, his P90 at the ready and his men in line behind him, Sergei noticed, in the corner of his vision, the second team progressing towards the large doors of the warehouse that he himself could not see.
After a dozen meters, the first team finally reached the house. The group split in two, both half gluing themselves to the wall on each side of the door.
Sergei, still in front of the group on the left side of the door, slightly pressed his left hand on the handle of the door. But nothing moved. So he started to make some complex hand gestures directed at the man directly in front of him and another one in the middle of the line. The two answered by the same confirmation gestures before executing the tasks they knew they had to do.
The one in front grabbed a flashbang from his plate carrier while the other let go of his submachine gun in favor of a shortened shotgun. The latter stepped out of the line and in front of the door before pulling and pushing the pump, forcing one of the twelve gauge cartridge out of its tubular magazine and into the chamber while at the same time cocking the hammer. The sound of the metal pieces moving quickly against each other was brief, but also really loud in the middle of the silent night.
« Hey ! It's me or I heard something outside ? » launched a heavy male voice from inside the building.
« Are you fucking drunk again ? » launched another voice.
It did not look like it, but it was valuable information for all of the operators. The shotgunner brought his weapon at the level of the handle, aiming at where the locking mechanism was.
« No. I swear I heard something out… »
The man was not able to finish his sentence as a dozen of small pellets pierced through the wood of the door, completely shattering the iron lock. The shooter, after having pulled back his shotgun towards him, gave a powerful kick with his left foot right next to the gaping hole, slamming the door open. He then quickly moved back towards his place in the queue while the soldier in front of said queue threw the small black cylinder inside.
There was a second of wait, the noises of the metal grenade rolling on the ground standing out of the other noises produced by what were probably surprised and confused men.
From this point, everything was happening like in slow motion, muscle memory kicking in after so many years of practice.
Sergei, always in front, jumped out of the right side of the door, made one step inside and started to move towards the right corner of the large common room that was occupying the entirety of the building's ground floor. Behind him, the leader of the right queue, the man that had launched the flashbang, also entered, but this time heading to the left corner of the room. The two file alternated that way while the operators that were already inside started to analyze the situation.
Square room, large fireplace on the left wall, stairs at the back, large rectangular table in the middle, stack of small crates and barrels in the back right corner behind a counter and various pieces of furniture along the rest of the other walls. Three men around the table and one in the stairs, daggers at their belts, short swords on the table in the middle of various pieces of food.
According to the man they had interrogated in the morning, all this men were smugglers, criminals. All twelve of them had blood on their hand. So when Sergei pulled the trigger of his P90, he had no regrets.
Mere instants after the loud bangs produced by the detonations of gun powder, one of the man sitting at the table fell over, the armor piercing rounds not even acknowledging the small layer of leather the target had been wearing on his torso.
The other had started to move their hands towards their swords by reflex, but they hardly had the time to grab their handle before they also felt the lead piercing their bodies. The man in the stair case tried to jump over the last steps to get to cover on the second floor, but sadly, no one can outrun a speeding bullet.
When the lifeless body came to a stop from its roll down the stairs, the last Fantôme finally entered the building while Sergei and the other front man started to move towards the back of the room, checking every single place where someone or something could hide.
« Clear. » he quickly launched after looking behind the counter and quickly turning around, pointing his gun at the upper part of the stairs, ready to shot anything that would dare coming from there.
Again, he felt a tap on his shoulder, meaning that the file behind him was once again complete. Slowly, he started to progress towards, and then up the stairs. At the top, the only way was left to enter in a corridor leading to the smuggler's bedrooms that occupied the entirety of the second floor. But he, like all the rest of the breaching team, already knew that.
When the operators reached halfway up, a man jumped out of the opening. He was only wearing a simple pair of pants, but was holding in his hand a short sword. For half a second, surprise appeared on his face before being shot several times, pushing him against the stone wall directly facing the stairs. As the body slowly slid down the stone, the operators continued their progression.
From the corridor, several mean screamed out of fear, probably from directly seeing their comrade's body pierced by invisible projectiles. But the attackers only acknowledged the fact that there were men in the corridor.
The file stopped when Sergei reached the corner. Again, he made some signs with his free hand. The man behind tapped on his shoulder once before throwing another flashbang into the corridor.
When the small grenade detonated, once again the operators rushed into the opening. The corridor was not very large, but there was enough space for three other men to stand, their hands covering their eyes or their ears. Even if those kinds of grenades were labelled non-lethal, a shattered ear drum can still really hurt.
Needless to say that they could not defend themselves anymore, and that they also fell down on the ground shortly after. In less than three minutes, if you include the two warehouse guards, eleven people had died inside the facility. It was a new record for the team, but it sure was helped by the complete lack of efficient weaponry on the opposite side. All the soldiers kept count of the number of neutralized enemies, so they all new that now, there was only one smuggler left.
Quickly, they checked the two openings on each side of the corridor that were all leading to small bedrooms only furnished with basic bunks and a few chests. All four were empty, and the only room that remained still unsearched was the Boss' bedroom, situated at the end of the corridor and, this time, actually closed by a door.
Like a well-oiled clock, the operators started to reproduce once again the breach-in procedure.
Stack up, evaluate how the door if the door is locked or not, choose an appropriate entry method and then finally enter. In this case, a simple powerful kick was enough to burst the wood panel wide open.
The room it revealed was still rather small, but very large compared to the other bedrooms. The other differences that showed the importance of the one living in it were the actual bed, the engraved drawers and other objects that almost felt out of place inside the isolated building.
But the most surprising thing they saw was their target, or at least how he was acting. He was not trying to fight, he was not trying to defend what he had gained over time. Instead, fear and terror had taken over his mind as he was crying, sitting in the corner, his hand loosely trying to protect his face from a potential projectile.
« Put your hands up ! Put your hands up ! » started to yell Sergei as he rushed towards the man, his submachine gun still pointed at him.
The man obeyed, raising both of his arms as high as he could while still staying in his corner. Now, the distortion caused by fear and terror were clearly visible on his face.
Without waiting, Sergei grabbed the man by the collar and pushed him violently on the ground. The target was now on his belly and only had half a second to realize what was going on before Doré, Fantôme two, grabbed both his arms and zipped them behind his back.
« Clear ! » shouted another operator.
Sergei nodded before reaching for his radio.
« This is Fantôme Actual. Building one is clear. I repeat, building one is clear. »
« Copy that, Actual. Area completely secured. Permission to give advice ? »
Even if he was on the field, Sergei was still the highest ranking officer and team leader.
« Go ahead. » he simply answered.
« You should go see the warehouse. »
Sergei trusted every single one of his men after many years of operations, so he knew that if he had to go to the warehouse.
He signaled his destination to his men before jogging down the stairs and outside the house, passing next the dead bodies, frozen on the ground. He quickly passed the entry door, noticing the scale of the damages caused by a single shotgun shell on the lock, and headed towards the entry of the large wooden warehouse, situated at the complete opposite, without even putting his night vision googles back on.
When he finally passed the corner of the large rectangular building, he saw Soul, Fünf and other members of the second assault team standing next to a campfire situated a few meters form a small opened door that was inside the larger opening panel. From where he was, Sergei could not see what was inside, but he clearly saw the pale faces of his two men.
« What's going on ? » he asked, getting closer to the two operators.
« See for yourself, boss. » simply answered Soul, pointing towards the opening.
When Sergei turned his head, he could not see anything because of the contrast created by the small campfire. So, he stepped inside.
The first thing that hit him was a hideous smell. Then, he saw the beams of light coming from flashlights of the few operators still inside the building.
But it was only when he turned on his own flashlight that he finally understood what the cargo so precious to the smugglers actually was.
« Putain de merde… »
Almost by definition, a throne room has to be big and full of decorations. The visitor that steps through the giant carved doors has to be impressed when he enters, the thought of all the power that not only the Emperor, but also the entire Empire, holds. Over many decades and changes of leaders, this psychological had only grew stronger. In fact, it was so strong that even those that lived daily in the palace could easily feel uneasy when entering the room.
It was that same feeling of uneasiness that was on the mind of Pina as she walked along the room in her light Rose Knight travel armor. Over time, she had learned to live with it, but this day it was stronger than usual. And there was a single and simple reason to that.
She was going to lie directly to her father, a man that had all her respect.
The original goal for her small adventure to Alnus had been to watch the movements of invaders, but after a series of unpredictable events, she had found herself signing an agreement on the other side of the Gate.
Now she had to convince her father that everything was fine, that her order is working on their mission, but hide that she had privileged accesses to not only the enemy's main camp, but also to their capital.
When she reached the level of the last set of pillars, she immediately knelt down in front of the Emperor that had watched her walk all the way from the large doors.
« Pina, he started, I am so happy to see you. I hope you bring great news. »
His voice had not changed since the last time, yet Pina felt like it was deeper than usual.
« The information that I bring with me is valuable, but I do not think we can qualify it as good. »
The Emperor raised a curious eyebrow.
« And why do you believe such things ? »
« When we were on our way to Alnus, we came across a small monastery that was hosting several wounded soldiers from the different battles with the invaders. One of them was King Duran. His left leg and his left arm were missing, and according to him those wounds had been caused by the weapons of the invaders. He told me they stroke him and his men in the middle of the night without them being able to directly see the enemy. »
« So the rumors that arrived from Alnus are true ? » he calmly asked.
« Yes, she answered almost immediately, but that is not everything. After that, I got the word that the city of Italica was under attack by a large group of bandits. So I decided to rush to Italica, trying to help defend the city. Myui Formar, now countess after the death of her father the Count, was grateful and with what remained of the City Guard, we successfully pushed back the first assault. But then, they arrived. »
Pina stopped for a second to breathe. It was only now that she noticed the small figure of Count Marx, standing next to the throne, always ready to give any advice to the Emperor.
« With their enormous flying machines, she continued, they arrived and asked to talk to the local leader. Then, a long discussion between them and the countess ensued. The agreement they found was that they would help defeat the bandits and rebuild Italica if the countess give them freedom of movement in the county. »
« But I imagine that you would not tell this to me directly if there was a catch. Am I right ? » launched her father before she could continue her speech.
« You are indeed right, Father. The soldiers from the other world do not know a lot about the leadership of the Empire. With the help of the countess, I managed to hide my status as Imperial Princess from them, and some members of the Rose Order are currently in Italica, gathering more information. »
The Emperor did not answered right away. Instead, he whispered a few words with his advisor. Pina's heartbeat started to rise, but she tried as well as she could not to show any emotion on her face.
« Pina, he then started again, you learn fast. You turned the situation to your advantage to accomplish your mission. You are making me proud. »
There was a moment of surprise. Out of all the remarks she had expected, that kind of compliment was not on the list.
« Now, I want to know everything. You shall also send to me every report you will receive from your knights. »
« Yes, Father. » she respectfully answered as a scribe entered by one of the small doors reserved to servants.
Was he buying it ? She could not tell the answer, the face of the Emperor still maintaining the same seriousness during the entirety of the exchange.
After the scribe sat down near a small hidden desk to write down all of the conversation, Pina started to give all the details that she could give that made her testimony consistent while at the same time not revealing the really important information about upcoming operations.
« The nation that we are fighting against is the Republic of France, helped by its allies from a force called NATO. In their world, the Gate appeared in the middle of Paris, their capital city. »
« So that is why we were so easily defeated. And I imagine that their powerful magic only made things worse for us. » the Emperor commented.
« The thing is that not a single one of their weapon or their vehicle uses any form of magic. In fact, before the Gate appeared, they did not even know magic existed. Still, they wield a power that seems unbelievable to us way more reliably than the greatest magicians. »
There was a second of heavy silence.
« This is a crucial detail. Magic negation spells will not have any effect against them. So there is no need to contact Rondel's authorities to try to drag them into the conflict. » he simply said, perfectly knowing that Marx would remember the remark and tell it to every general involved.
« Another important thing is that the countess is still the ruler of the county. Apparently, if the French want or need to change something on how the land is run, they always ask for the benediction of the countess. This might be the first time an occupation force occupy a city this way. »
Her father's head slightly moved backwards in surprise.
« So they are not planning on any annexations… This is great news. »
« However, I have been lead to think it is only because Italica never truly attacked the other world. From what I have seen, the French will certainly try to imprison you and put a new government. »
The Emperor's head returned to his normal position, just like if the situation had just returned to normal. Their enemy was still their enemy.
The Princess' report continued for Gods know how long, the scribe silently writing down everything, before she bowed down one last time.
When she rode away from the Imperial Palace, she was closely followed by Hamilton, her young aide, who had been waiting outside the throne room during the entire discussion. They both remained completely silent, going through the streets of the richest parts of the Capital.
It was only when they passed through the gates of the Jade Palace that she finally dared to ask a question.
« What do we do now, your Highness ? »
Pina took a second to think about it, before giving a firm answer.
« Now, we wait for the French to make their move. »
Alnus Village, Main Plaza, February 5th 2017, 2100 AT
The blue of the sky was slowly getting darker as the golden circle moved towards the western horizon. From time to time, a helicopter or a plane would slowly pass overhead, creating a black dot on the painting.
This painting was the background of the end of Myuute's third patrol, the bright orange band of the Gendarmes on her right arm. She really liked what she called the backdrop of her new life.
Next to her, as she walked down one of the street leading to the largest plaza of the village, was Rory Mercury and a Gendarme officer. After all, the young Siren was still under observation for being a new recruit and a former convict. But it was less of an observation and more of a lesson about all the things needed to become a law enforcer. Sure, Myuute still had a few problems adapting to the protocol, but it was progressively getting used to it. In fact, some Gendarmes even admitted to her that they had more trouble with the Apostle, despite her effectiveness.
As they almost reached the plaza, the small watched that the officer was wearing started to beep, indicating the end of the patrol. As always, and much to his despair, Rory simply waved goodbye before heading to a place that had quickly become the heart of the village after its opening, and next to which they had coincidently stopped.
La Halebarde Noire. The Black Halberd. The tavern.
From the street, Myuute could see several groups of soldiers sitting around the wooden tables. As the Gendarme started to communicate with his superiors through his radio, she started to listen to a group of anonymous French soldiers that were singing to one Cat woman tavern employee, raising their cups.
Quand Madelon vient nous server à boire,
Sous la tonnelle, on frôle son jupon.
Et chacun lui raconte une histoire,
Une histoire à sa façon.
La Madelon pour nous n'est pas sévère,
Quand on lui prend la taille ou le menton.
Elle rit, c'est tout le mal qu'elle sait faire.
Madelon, Madelon, Madelon.
The young servant blushed, touched by the lighthearted tone of the tune despite the foreign language, and Myuute smiled. Other world or not, soldiers were soldiers, seducing the local women, drinking alcohol and singing songs.
Laughs erupted from other groups in the tavern, the singing continued and the Gendarme lightly tapped on her shoulder to tell her that they had to return to the Gendarmerie for debriefing. She nodded and they both turned around, her mind completely focused on her upcoming hot bath and meal. So much so that, after her first steps away from the restaurant, she did not notice the shadow that passed through the front door and jogged towards them.
« Myuute ? » launched a woman's voice with an accent that the young Siren immediately identified, before she even turned around, as American.
When she spun around, her suspicion were confirmed by the sight of the pattern of grey squares on her clothes and the Stars and Stripes on her shoulders. She had a deep black skin and her long hair were in a simple ponytail.
« Myuute ? » she asked again with a point of doubt in her voice.
« Yes. How can I… » she started to reply, wanting to ask what the matter was, before finally realizing who this soldier was.
They had already met before, but in a way different context. The Army soldier was missing her heavy ballistic helmet, the heavy plate carrier and the light machine gun, while the background was way too peaceful compared to the one of a city under siege.
« You… You are that soldier… At Italica ? » faltered the young Siren.
« Yes, answered the soldier before quickly saluting. Lance Corporal Mary Jenkins, Thirty-sixth Infantry Regiment. I… I just wanted to say I am sorry about what happened. »
« Oh… Well thanks. But I must apologize too. All of this would not have happened if I did not try to kill you that day. »
« Well it is not like neither of us had a choice huh ? » laughed Mary.
« It is true… It is true. I never wanted to attack Italica. I am truly thankful that I am still alive, even if I had to be injured for that to happen. »
« Oh yeah… How is your leg doing ? A bullet is a pretty difficult thing to recover from. »
Myuute simply pulled up the lower part of her tunic, a piece of clothing that she had managed to keep despite the battle and her detention, just enough to reveal two circular scars.
« Wow. That's pretty impressive. » Mary simply said with the amazed tone of someone that had already seen many bullet wounds during her career.
« You doctors also felt impressed, replied Myuute before the Gendarme tapped on her shoulder and on his watch to indicate that they had to hurry. Oh, I have to go. It was great talking to you, Corporal. »
« Same, but call me Mary next time. »
The American waved goodbye before reentering the tavern, and the two Gendarmes headed towards the Gendarmerie.
A lighthearted chat started between the two as they progressed through the small empty streets of the village. From time to time, they would go on the side of the road to let a car pass. It was only when they had the small building flying the French flag in sight that they both heard another question, this time coming from a man with a British accent.
« Hey girls, you don't want to have some fun ? »
The two law enforcers quickly turned around to find, on the other side of the street, two soldiers blocking the way of two villager women, both of them carrying large reusable plastic bags full of groceries. They looked intimidated, not daring to answer to the two men in uniform and their demands.
« Hey you know it's not polite to not answer. » launched the second one, trying to reach for the younger of the two woman.
The Gendarme sighed, rolled his eyes and launched a quick message through his radio before making a step. Myuute quickly understood that, even if she was seeing it for the first time, this kind of scene was way more common than she thought.
« What is going on here ? » he asked with a powerful voice, shifting almost immediately the attention towards him.
« Oh fuck. » left out one of the two soldier.
« Myuute, take care of the ladies. » whispered the officer in the Siren's ear.
She nodded and pulled out a small notepad before gently guiding the two women a few meters away and taking their deposition. But for the Gendarme, things were a little more heated.
« What is your unit, soldiers ? » he asked, not seeing any officer rank on their uniform.
« Fuck off ! » was the only reply he got.
But what immediately hit him was something completely different.
The smell of alcohol in the soldier's breath.
« Alright, that's it ! You are both coming with me ! » he launched, pulling out a pair of handcuffs.
« Fuck off mate ! »
He quickly dodged the drunk punch before grabbing the extended arm and pulling down, forcing the man to fall on the dirt ground and tying his two hands behind his back. But in the corner of his vision, the Gendarme saw the other soldier trying to grab him. In reflex, he raised his two hands in a guard position and braced for impact.
But the punch never came.
Instead, the soldier was terraced by a shadow.
He brought his hands down, only to find out Myuute, standing over the soldier now also on the ground, the claws of her right bird-like foot planted in the dirt and surrounding his neck.
« Do not move ! » she almost yelled.
« I don't think he can really do anything. » sarcastically said the Gendarme as he cuffed the hand of the second soldier.
As he stood up and brushed the dust off his pants, a pair of Gendarmes quickly arrived and took the two soldiers away towards the Gendarmerie.
« Are you alright ? » asked the Siren, her heart still beating fast because of the adrenalin.
« Yeah, I'm fine. »
After dissipating the small crowd that had formed in the middle of the street, the two finally reached the Gendarmerie, much their relief.
« So what will happen about those two ? » asked the Siren as she put away her equipment in a small locker.
« Not a lot, sadly. We'll keep them for a night here, then we'll give them back to their units, they will receive a small punition and that's it. » answered the officer, doing the same in a similar locker.
« What ? That's all ? I thought that every crime is punished in your world. »
He violently closed his locker in a great metallic noise before sighing, his eyes closed. He then turned his head and looked at Myuute, directly in her naïve eyes.
« You know… Sometimes, the truth is way different than what we say. »
[Location Classified], [Date Classified], 0810 AT
Slaves.
The cargo that the smugglers transported in and out of the Capital were slaves.
When Soul and Fünf violently opened the door of the warehouse, the sight that they discovered through the green filter of their night vision google was terrifying.
At least a hundred people, barely wearing any clothes, were lying directly on the dirt ground in enclosures similar to the one where a farmer would lock his cattle.
During their past operations, they had already rescued prisoners and hostages from terrible living conditions, but none of them had witnessed such a horrible sight.
The word quickly made its way up the chain of command, and the word that came back down the chain was that a medical team was on its way in addition of planned reinforcement. And since that point of the night, every pair of hand available in the Fantôme team helped sorting out the slaves.
The operators relayed each other, the mixed smell of urine, feces, sweat and blood being too strong for some. In addition to the long checkup process, the verification lasted up until the sun started to rise over the height of the trees.
Soul and Fünf were slowly helping the last slave, a dog man that had spent a week with extremely tight chains arounds his legs and his arms, out of the wooden building when the faint noise of a helicopter slowly appeared.
« Looks like your ambulance arrived. » said Soul, lightly tapping on the dog man's shoulder.
The slave started to open his canine mouth like to say something, but Fünf cut him before he could even start.
« Hey, you hear that ? » he asked, stopping in the process the walk of the three men in the middle of the large door.
« Yeah, I know. Did you even listen ? » answered Soul with an exasperated voice.
« No, not the chopper. I heard something inside. »
« What ? »
« Hey Doré, can you take my place for a minute ? » loudly asked Fünf to the tall man that was turning them his back.
Doré turned around, simply nodded and grabbed the slave's arm from over Fünf's shoulder before putting it on his. As soon as he was free, the young operator almost ran back inside the warehouse, looking around franticly.
Soul knew he could not do anything about it at this point, so he just sighed before continuing helping the slave reach the house to be given food and water.
Soul came back to the warehouse only a few minutes later. What he saw was Fünf, kneeling down near the back wall, his ear pressed against the wood.
« What the fuck are you doing, man ? » asked Soul, walking towards his teammate.
« There is something behind that wall. The noise is coming from there. »
It was only when he reached the half way point of the barn that Soul finally heard it.
It was like the complaining groan of a dog that had spent too much time locked inside a room. Faint, slow and full of sadness.
« Oh merde. » he simply left out as he started to jog to join Fünf.
« There aren't any openings, continued the younger soldier as he pulled on a piece of wood that squeaked, but that plank is kind of loose. Can you give me a hand ? »
Under the strength of the two operators on the plank, the iron nails fixing the piece of wood quickly broke away from their supports.
With the plank gone, the two soldiers discovered another room, completely isolated from the rest of the warehouse. They both pulled out and turned on their flash lights, and Soul grabbed his pistol from its holster on his leg. Even if it was normal procedure, it was justified. After all, an injured animal that feels threatened can be very aggressive.
This space was dark, the only light coming from the two powerful lightbulbs. The size was as they expected, as long as the back wall of the barn, but barely wide enough for one man to stand in it.
The cry echoed between the two walls. Soul and Fünf immediately directed their lights towards where it came from, a small stack of hay in a corner. On it was lying what looked like a fox, closing its eyes to not be blinded by the intense light coming from the torch. Its fur was dirty, the brown of the dirt completely hiding the true original color of the fur and each hair grossly sticking to another.
« Fucking hell… » let out Fünf as he slowly approached his hand.
« Why would they have this here ? » asked the other soldier out loud, not really expecting any answer.
A leather collar was around the fox's neck, tightening it to the point of near strangulation. It was linked to a metal chain coming from a heavy rock, preventing the animal from moving freely around the small space. But the strangest thing that Fünf noticed, just before ripping the leather in half to liberate the fox, was the gem inserted in the back of the collar.
« This is starting to get really weird. » said Fünf, picking up the small animal as Soul observed the stone, shining with the white light.
It was only now that he noticed the discreet outlines of a small trap leading directly outside, but barely a few centimeters large, maybe for throwing food inside what truly was a cell, but he simply waved it off before following Fünf out of the warehouse.
Outside, Sergei was waiting for them as the sound of the helicopter was becoming louder and louder every second.
« So what did you find ? » he asked with the tone he used during off-duty conversation.
« The back wall was fake, answered Fünf while slowly petting the fox like to reassure it. It created like a small space and this little guy was in it. From what I can see, it just suffers from malnourishment and there are traces of light strangulation. »
During his youth, Fünf had lived in a family of cattle farmers, while his farmer neighbors raised many other kind of animals. So when he joined the team, the Fantômes made him their animal expert. Doubting his observations would be close to madness.
« There was also this gem in the collar, said Soul as he handed out the shiny stone to his superior. It doesn't make any sense. Why would they put use such a fancy stone for that ? »
« Well I would ask our new friend, answered Sergei referring to the leader of the smugglers, but he has passed out, and I bet he will not speak easily until we put him in the hand of the intelligence. »
But before any of the three could speak again, each of their radio buzzed.
« Fantôme Team, this is Hawk One. We are incoming on vector one seven six. ETA twenty seconds. Over. »
« Hawk One, replied Sergei after pressing a large button of his radio, Fantôme Actual. Solid copy. We have enough space. You are clear to land. »
The noise of the rotating wings of the incoming helicopter quickly started to become louder and louder, to the point that in the eyes of the majority of the newly rescued slaves, the same look of confusion and fear appeared.
In the middle of the courtyard, some operators had passed the last few minutes moving some of the slaves to create a large area free from any obstacle. Some wondered what the use for such a space was and why it was supposed to be their way out from the smuggler's camp. But all of a sudden, they all got their answer.
Faster than anything they could have imagined, the brown banana-shaped body of a CH-47 Chinook appeared from over the trees, its two large rotors creating a powerful rotating wind. On both side of the helicopter, over the small glass ovals, were painted in dark letters words that many could not even understand, but were going to have a lot of meaning.
UNITED STATES ARMY
FORSO - NSRTF
As the enormous flying machine started to hover a dozen meters above the ground, Sergei pointed the entry of the house to his two subordinates.
« Anyway, put it with the others. I have to say hi to the medical team. »
The two nodded before heading towards the door. Sergei turned around to face the closed door of the helicopter as the tires of the landing gears finally touched the grass of the ground. The pair of rotors started to slow down, the powerful whine of the two engines progressively disappearing into the blue sky, and the metallic beast opened its large mouth.
Some of the slaves expected to see large teeth and a big red tongue. Instead, it was a group of men in the same green uniform as their saviors and many large crates in a steel interior.
The men started to exit the cargo bay, carrying the heavy crates and their own enormous bags under the suspicious look of the unusual audience.
The one in front stopped just in front of Sergei. He was older than all the other operators, a small scar on his right cheek showing that he had lived through many challenges. The only patch he was wearing other than the FORSO one was representing a golden crossbow on a blue background with the words "Commandement des Opérations Spéciales" written around it.
The two raised their right hands next to their head before putting them back along their legs and shaking them in an act of respectful salutation.
« Lieutenant Pantov. » said the COS officer in a straight forward tone.
« Mon Capitaine. » replied Sergei with the same tone, looking his superior in the eyes.
His full name was Grégoire Danpré, but Sergei could not say it out loud to respect the protocol. He was a former marksman of the Premier Régiment d'Infantrie de Marine, the First Marine Infantry Regiment, wounded in action in the first years of the French operations in Afghanistan. It might not have been enough to completely put him out of service, but it was still enough to get a less demanding place in Special Operation Command.
« You know how to discover interesting stuff, don't you ? » he asked as Sergei indicated him the way to the house.
« Well considering the fact that we are basically in the Roman Empire, I can't say that finding slaves is really that surprising. »
The two entered the large common room of the house that had been transformed into a room in which the slaves waited for their turn to get some water and some food. They made their way up the stairs, where the small beds where all occupied by those with broken limbs or needing a lot of rest. They stopped in the large bedroom of the former smugglers' leader.
« Anyway, continued Danpré as he put down his bag. We have already planned the first rotations of the Chinooks to bring everything necessary here and evacuate the slaves. Then, we will make the contact with the Knights and the diplomat will arrive. »
He paused for a second, taking off his helmet.
« So now, we have to go down to business. »
This concludes the twenty-first chapter of Gate : Opération Marteau de Justice.
First, I really want to apologize for bringing this chapter a few days late. I barely had any access to a decent internet connection for the last week and, in consequence, I was not able to post the chapter on the fourteenth, like usual. But only the release date has changed and, when you will read this, I will already have started writing the twenty-second chapter.
Being away from the Internet for a few days allowed me to work a little more than usual on this chapter, and I managed to include a "bonus story" in it in the form of the scene with Myuute as a Gendarme.
If you want to be informed of any delay, modification or other kind of news about the story and/or myself, be sure to either follow me on twitter (twitter . com / TheSlyls) or be a part of the GATE subreddit's Discord server as I will post any news there.
But now, it's time for the reviews.
SpudyPotato – It's true that not a lot of stories include that part, making Yao simply pop up out of nowhere when the Dragon arc starts. I feel like saying why she left her forest and her people really defines who she is and what she is ready to do.
Soberan 123 – Patience. It will come soon enough.
alexisdu7442 – Petite confidence, j'ai une petite idée concernant le GIGN dans un coin de ma tête, mais ce n'est pas pour tout de suite ;).
Sceonn – I can't hide the fact that until the last few chapters, OMJ mainly followed the GATE canon while only modifying a few elements. It's only because I think that many things make actual sense in those parts of the story. But still, the last three chapter are completely original, Yanai not covering these kind of elements.