Reason to Live II
Chapter 2: His Weapon
(Frederick's P.O.V)
I spent the rest of my day thinking on what he'll do to me if he ever remembers. The shooting range and the obstacle course I love isn't the same anymore with his presence around. One thing for certain though, he didn't receive as much conditioning as I do which gives him some liberty. As I fire my weapon, I saw him standing there without a weapon; without anything in his hand. I overheard Sylvia; his handler, talking with Hillshire saying that Edward, the name he was given to, was a little picky on his weapon of choice. After studying a book about weapons and arms, Edward decided he'll be using something with a .45 caliber. He was given the M16A4 Assault Rifle we got in stock here, and accept it quite nicely. It's only up to the side-arm he'll be using. And that's where the matters fall to me…
"Frederick."
"Ja?"
"Mind if Edward uses your Colt M1911A1?"
Hillshire's question is understandable enough. So, Edward is asking for MY M1911A1 just because it uses .45 caliber rounds? Why can't he just use revolvers or magnums? Oh wait, he prefers American made fire-arms so asking him to use H&K Mk. 23 is out of the question.
"…Do you happen to have the Ruger P-97?"
"If we have one, Frederick, Sylvia would already hand it over." I pause for a moment "Why do we have to listen to this new Operative anyway? I haven't even seen him perform in the field!"
"Frederick, listen here. He'll be operating today with you at 1600 hours and if he didn't receive his side-arms now, we might as well send you alone!"
"Well why can't you send me with Triela?" I insist hoping he'll agree
"We would like to Frederick, but we wanted to evaluate his effectiveness on the field. And since you're capable of working alone, you're the perfect candidate. Alles klar?"
"Ja, ja Alles klare…" with that, he walks off "Ficken sie…un Fick Edward!"
"I understand how you're feeling Frederick. But I can understand what you're saying too." Says so Triela who's training beside me
So there I was, giving my third side-arm to the person who would probably kill me the next thing I knew. After a short walk with Triela (accompanied by the eindringling), I finally guide him to my room. He really is a quite first-timer. No noise at all, no questions, no comments, and no random conversations. Its almost like…he's just 'there' to disappear the next. That's what I thought about him until he finally opens up…
"She your girl?" he asks with a well exposed American accent
"Yeah."
"She's quite a looker."
"Hey, hey! Pick a different girl! There's plenty around here!"
"No, no. I have no intention on taking your girl. She is, quite a looker though."
"That's just a comment?"
"Just a comment."
"Thanks for commenting." Then there was a moment of silence "You speak good Italian…"
"Thanks. I don't even remember where I learned them." Must be due to the brainwashing and conditioning process
"How about you? You're…uh…"
"Frederick." I answer bluntly "You?"
"Edward Burns. Great name, for a great guy…"
"Really?" I answer to his self-compliment "You don't look like an 'Edward' to me."
"And you, Frederick." He stated "You're originally from Germany, aren't you? And so does your girl earlier…what's her name…?"
"Triela. How'd you know? We could be from the Netherlands."
"Both of you has bold Germanic accent; though her Italian is much more fluent than yours."
"Thanks for the compliment" I reply
"You're welcome. Besides, you mentioned 'Holland' as 'Netherlands' which is more commonly used by those living in Germany."
"Figures." I answer crossing my arms
Edward is totally amazed when he saw my room. On the walls were displayed various old weapons fit for a collector. Well, not something that lasted for two decades, but something that lasted since World War II. On display were German-made StG 44 Assault Rifle; the mother of all modern assault rifles and my primary weapon. Below it were two MP40 Sub-Machineguns I commonly use for indoor Assault that requires quick fire-rate and low recoil. Below it is the scoped K98K rifle I use during the Assault on that Mansion where I got terribly wounded. Of course, I was thinking of replacing it with a semi-automatic sniper rifle that comes with a higher magazine capacity. I tend not to count my bullets when I'm on a roll killing Padanias, so I have a tendency to run out of ammo and getting myself saved by Triela, or Henrietta, or Rico, or Petrushka for that matter.
Let's hope my luck hasn't run out…
Then in a different wall, just by my comfortable bed is the M16A2 I used to use, now barely untouched and is left there. It's still usable, so anyone can grab it and use it anytime they want. Of course, they have no ammunition; stored them away in the SWA's armory for others to use it. We got plenty of those anyway. In the study table, there's a PC Koch gave me using his salary (never expected it, but its great), different cases of war movies; old and new, various cases of first-person shooter video games, yellow notepad to take comment on the movies and to tag what to remember. Then there's the case; a small case which fits two of my favorite Mauser C/96. The gun goes way back in history, just like Triela's 'Trench gun'. It's still reliable until now, using 9mm Parabellum rounds fitted into a stripper clip. A favorite of mine, and is still is.
"Some collection you got here…" He commented "Mind if I take a look around?"
"Sure. Don't touch anything. I'll get your .45 and the ammo necessary for it." As I was looking for the purple ammo case (which contains the necessary .45 ACP rounds), Edward notices something I placed by the window. Never thought he'd ask, but he ask about them anyway
"Hey, Fred…"
"Don't call me with such a dorky nick. Frederick's fine." I reply in a rather offensive tone
"Yeah, Frederick; this picture…"
"What picture?"
"This here…in the Piazza di Spagna, was it?"
"Yeah, what about them?"
"Where're you in this picture? There's Triela, there's this glasses girl, there's this long haired girl, then there's this short haired brunette, and this short haired blonde, and this no-faced handler standing in the background but where're you?" stopping my search I turn my attention towards him and check the photo
"For God's sake, call my 'sisters' with their appropriate given name! Here's Claes." I pointed out the glasses girl
"And here's Angelica!" next I pinpoint the long haired girl
"And this here's Henrietta" …then the short haired brunette
"And this here's Rico." …then the short haired blonde
"What about you…?" he asks. Boy is he irritating me! "And this is me!" …lastly, I pinpoint the no-faced handler. Goddamn photo prints…what is this black mark anyway? Triela nearly forgotten about me since there's almost no evidence of me in this forsaken photo!
"Oh…"
"Here." I hand him over the purple box of .40 ACP rounds to him before I open the drawer and give him the 'old faithful' "And this here is your side-arm; a genuine Colt M1911A1 semi-automatic pistol. Take good care of it!"
"You really wanted me to get out of your room, aren't you?"
"As a matter of fact, I do. Please…?"
With that, he left the room with no 'thank you' or 'thanks for showing me around' or something like that. Maybe because he's so arrogant that he thinks that's unnecessary! Or maybe because he's new he thinks we all need to serve him! Or maybe because…because…
... Maybe it's because of my own attitude?
Geez. This has been one hell of a welcome, and that 'Edward' is really cracking my nerves one by one. If I have a chance, I'll smack him in the face with my fist! That arrogance of his has to change! Why can't he go around and say 'hello' or 'good afternoon' or whatever. Why'd he have to be that picky? Damn it why did he receive such a nice handler? Why can't he receive a handler like Jean or someone viler? Sigh…
…Americans…
January 6th,
Outskirts of Warehouses,
1800 hrs
And here we are in the outskirts of Rome. Another typical assault on Padania to ruin they're day. Intel has it Padania operations in Rome has been receiving illegal weapons from here. We're gonna' ambush them tonight, and hamper further of their operations. We don't know from whom, and where; but we know why we're here: KILL DAMN PADANIAS!! Recon reported that an estimated number of 10 to 15 transport trucks has been spotted coming through here almost daily at 6 PM. How they managed to get through security is unknown. As the warehouse is fully guarded, and that this is Italian Military property, this will be a sneaking mission. As the trucks roll in at 1810hrs, operatives are expected to sneak into the cargo of the last truck and infiltrate into the Warehouses. As it is, two operatives have been sent to investigate and eliminate any possible threats encountered. There will be NO casualties from Italian Carabinieri. Sadly, I'm with smart-ass here with his brand new shiny .45 Caliber M1911A1 handgun which's originally mine!
"Remember Frederick: DO NOT, I say again; DO NOT OPEN FIRE…"
"…Unless you're threatened, or they found out about you." Cutting Hillshire's 'warning talk' as usual "I got it Hillshire. Nothing will go wrong tonight…with the exception of Uncle Sam here…"
"Uncle Sam? Who're you mocking Kraut?" and there's the reply from ol' Uncle Sam, no other than Edward
"Oh , nothing. Frederick out." I cut the intercom and turn my attention to him "Listen here Yank, you're new here so don't play smart-ass! If you get yourself hurt, who's responsible, huh?"
"My handler, of course!" answers Edward with confidence
"WRONG DUMB-ASS! I'll be responsible since I'm watching YOU for the night! YOUR handler would be responsible on fixing you up! Got that?"
"Who's asking to be watched in the first place?"
"Cut it you two." The intercom in Edward's coat rings with Sylvia on the line "We're here hampering further operations of Padania, as well as field evaluate Edward and see how he performs. So please don't make this into a much rougher night…"
"…Unless you wanted to be replaced with Triela, Frederick." …Excuse me Hillshire?
"WHAT!? NO WAY! HE…" Pinpointing Edward "…AND TRIELA? NO WITH A CAPITAL N AND O!!"
"I got it Frederick, so please cooperate this time. Hillshire out."
"DAMN IT I HATE THIS!!"
(Edward's P.O.V)
Hell yeah you should've! You and your I-know-everything attitude give me a pain in the ass! We'll se how well you perform against me Kraut! Your 9M&Ms can't beat my .45 ACPs! You'll see how well I perform in this field! Why'd he have to be rough to me anyway? What the hell did I do in the first place? What am I supposed to do? Kill someone else? I'll kill him instead…!
…why am I here in the first place?
I don't remember anything what happened. All I know is that I woke up in a Hospital, surrounded by someone I somehow recognize, but never have met before. Then she shoves me Italian made weapons. And boy how I hate them. A few days after, I receive the M16A4. A good rifle, but too light. I was expecting something that will pack a REAL punch at close range. The next thing I knew, I was an operative part of the SWA and my name is Edward Burns. I should wonder how I managed to end up here. People say I think too much…
"Alright 'Edward', its mission time; lock and load, Yank!" Said Frederick as he took out two old Mauser C/96s and load them with 9M&M rounds.
"You double wield?" I ask curiously
"Yeah. More ammunition, more targets. You're OK with one .45? That thing only has 7 rounds."
"7 rounds…" I said grinning gleefully "1 round, for one man. That's 7 rounds and 7 victims total. There will be no misses!" Frederick's eyes rolled sideways showing annoyance and a 'yeah-right' expression "Arrogant Americans…"
"Excuse me?"
"Nothing. Remember, no firing!"
"Got it."
The groaning engine of trucks came a minute later. The guards (or precisely Military Polices) stopped them for proper inspections as usual. Then there it is: our first answer to how these shipments were transported here: bribing. You don't need any proper papers for this one; just 'papers' with a green 'note' slipped within it. Soon after, the gate was open and the trucks came rolling in…
"Here's our chance. Let's move Yankee!"
Running as fast as we could undercover of the night, we managed to climb aboard the last truck and hid among the stashes of crates. The ride is a bumpy one, but quite comfortable for us to be sitting down as we check our weapons once more. Looking at Frederick, I notice how detailed he is on checking every inch of his weapon. We prepare ourselves once again as the truck makes a complete stop at a warehouse no. 50; the last warehouse in the compound.
January 6th,
Warehouse no. 50,
1900 hrs
(Frederick's P.O.V)
Sometimes, missions like this reminds me of those video games I once played about a World War II shooter taking place in Europe. It's a nice game, really. The thing is you can't carry a total amount of 5-6 weapons at the same time; that includes Panzerschrecks and the B.A.R as well as the Thompson and the StG 44 Assault Rifle. Also, you can't hurt or even scratch a tank with mere grenades…unless you're foolish enough to waste them on one tank and get yourself blown to bite size pieces the next thing you knew. The only way to kill a tank with grenades is to throw them into the hatch and kill the crew. That's all there is.
"Alright, all clear! Let's move…"
Checking right and left, I climb out of the truck and take out both Mauser C/96s as Blondie climb out with his single .45 pistol. We crept to the side of the truck, once again checking our right and left as we hear voices talking close by. Truck Drivers, probably talking about their next shipments and how these weapons were distributed among the ranks. Getting them here is one thing, now it's up to how these weapons get through the Carabinieri.
As the skies grew darker, the truck drivers left the Warehouses and probably head for the outposts. Soon, the warehouse's lights were killed.
"Damn, it sure is quiet around here with all the weapons around…" state Edward as he checks one of the trucks full of weapon caches
"What? You expect Nicholas Cage to be around here selling weapons to Padanias?" Chuckling, he answers "No. You've been watching too many movies…ah! Look what I found!"
Then he shows it to me. The M1A1 Thompson American made Sub-Machinegun that hosts .45 ACP rounds as its main ammunition; thus the M1911A1 he's using shares the same ammunition as the Tommy gun he's currently waving around. The sturdiness, the power of it in close range, and the history behind it is really something…
"I'll be taking this…" he stated while grabbing a magazine pouch and a bunch of extra magazines
"What're you gonna' do with the M16A4 now? Thought that's your primary weapon…"
"I'll discard it and return it to Sylvia. I have no use for rifles; I'm built for close-quarters battles!"
"That's my line Yank!"
The more we scour the area, the further we unravel how and where were these shipments coming from. Padania has been using this warehouse to store their weapons, inspect it, and distribute next in an undisclosed area. Getting inside is easy as Padania have their contacts in the Carabinieri forces guarding this area; as well as a list of those corrupted ones. Not to mention four of the last warehouses, including Warehouse no. 50 and 49 were unused warehouse and has been left abandoned for several years now, making proper inspections by Carabinieri unnecessary.
…or so they thought
Shipments of weapons came from Milan, and were sent here under the name of Cliff Michaels; who as well work as their supporter by funding them in bombing and other terrorist actions. His death recently doesn't disrupts supply lines as funds and weapons were continually distributed with Michael's funded weapons supplier, and his remaining treasures as his only heir died recently in an accident…wait…Michaels…sounds familiar…
"What did you find, Kraut?"
"Here, check the papers…" he sure's racking my nerves...
I hand him over the papers as well as flashlights necessary to read in the dark. His reaction after skimming through it strokes me of something I should've remembered earlier. Cliff Michael's my assassinated target 4 days ago! And this guy here with the papers is the supposed-to-be deceased heir! Meinn Gott! What have I done? I actually fast-forward my day of judgment!
"Edward…hey, YANK!" I shook him up a bit and startled him for a second. Recovering from his statement with sweat dripping all over, he looked at me as though he has just saw a nightmare. "You ok?"
"Y-yeah…just had something…weird…I don't know…"
"Let's continue. Hillshire…" this time, I'll be waiting for further orders "What is our next assignment? We've recovered documents you're interested in."
"Very well. According to intelligence, there should've been a shipment of C4s there. Plant them around the weapons trucks and set them off for 10 minutes. A High Ranking Padania and the weapon supplier is supposed to arrive here 15 minutes from now for inspection and negotiation. So you got 5 minutes to plant those charges and get the hell out. From here on, it's your job to ambush them and get out quickly before the main Carabinieri forces arrives. They got men in high places in Carabinier; so if any of you is captured or killed, we will not take responsibility. Either you carry each other out, or we'll permanently disband both of you. Make sure the C4 is enough to kill both the Padania and weapon supplier. I'll be waiting behind Warehouse no. 49, just beyond the fence. Triela has cut a hole through so you just have to crawl under it."
"Some objective Hillshire…Frederick out."
"So what are we supposed to do now?"
"Plant C4 charges around the weapon trucks, get out of here as fast as possible, and watch the fireworks as two of our targets burned in flame. Easy huh?"
"So much for field evaluating…I didn't do anything around here…"
"At least we know how good you are on following orders."
We scour the trucks once more to search for the designated C4 charges. Sure enough, we found plenty of them stashed in one of the trucks. Taking a couple of them hands full, we start arming them and time the as required while planting them on some of the most explosives Arsenal around: C4 loaded trucks, RPG (including the rocket) loaded Trucks, and Ammunition trucks. Twelve trucks in total, four trucks carrying those highly explosive toys. And those four will make a huge boom once we're out of here. Two minutes passes and everything went smoothly as we plant the last charge on the last of the trucks before the door's open, the lights went on, the cars pulls in, the guys (targets) goes out, and the guards (Padanias)…
"Hey! Who goes there?" Little we know they arrive a little early…
"Scheiße! So much for being quite! OPEN FIRE EDWARD!!"
To be continued…
Author's Note:
And that's chapter two. Done and done! Nothing else to say, it will take a little longer before Edward finally realizes he's (!!!). Well, read and review! A little R&R! That's all I'm saying. Been caught up in work now, so next chapter would take something a little longer…