3
Manila, The Philippines
"You guys are late," Lehm grunted.
Armed men and a woman appeared from the shadows. The HCLI commandos are dressed for the occasion and armed with high-powered weapons, primarily Heckler and Koch HK416 carbines fitted with all kinds of gizmos.
"Sorry, Lehm," Tojo mused. "Traffic is horrible in this city."
"You're just a lousy driver, Tojo," Valmet commented, to the jeers of her colleagues.
"We are running out of time," Lehm said. "Let's go."
The team sneaked inside the massive structure, formerly a cement plant. They hugged the walls, careful not to expose themselves to the sentries. Their guns are equipped with sound suppressors that would cut down the noise, but would not totally eliminate it. Lehm hoped then can get inside the plant before any shooting happens.
The team silently reached a tall structure, the highest point on the compound. "Lutz, Tojo, you're on top," Lehm ordered.
Lutz nodded, slinging his Knights Armament Corporation SR-25 sniper rifle on his back. He started climbing the steel ladder. Tojo quickly followed him, HK416 ready on his right hand. The pair reached the top of the tower in only a few minutes. The ten story elevation gave them excellent view of the whole plant. Tojo quickly scanned the sentried using his binoculars. "I got two on your 2 o clock, Lehm," he reported.
"Take them out," the leader ordered.
Lutz set the crosshairs of his Leupold Mark 4 Mil-dot scope at the sentry in the left. He can see that the man is armed with a rifle. Lutz knew he has to make an instant kill precision shot, as the man could pull the trigger of his weapon to alert the others. He aimed at the man's head. Lutz breathed and put pressure on the trigger until it snaps. The KAC suppressor muffled the sound of the 7.62mm bullet as it leaves the barrels. Downrange, the sentry's head exploded in a mist of blood and gore.
Lutz quickly shifted aim on the second man. He was stunned as his friend collapsed, half of his head gone. Lutz didn't give him time to even know what was going on. The second sentry also fell with a bullet wound on his head.
"Clear," Lutz reported to the radio.
"Roger," Lehm's reply.
Lehm, Valmet, Jonah, Mao, Ugo and Wiley continued walking towards the plant. They reached the main structure building. Two sentries are guarding the rear door, smoking cigarettes while talking about their families. Lehm raised his H&K Mk23 pistol and fired two suppressed .45 caliber rounds. Both guards fell dead with lead lobotomies to their skulls.
Valmet opened the door and sneaked inside. She quickly climbed the steel stairs towards the second floor. A guard saw her and he tried to raise his rifle. Valmet pounced like a cat, slashing her huge SUG Creed bowie knife at the neck of the man. Blood sprayed as she cuts the jugular. Another sentry appeared on the corridor. Valmet's hand snapped as she threw a kunai knife, burying it at the sentry's left eye socket.
Suppressed gunshots alerted her from behind. Valmet saw Jonah, his Browning HiPower pistol smoking. A man lay dead behind her, killed by a double tap to the heart. Valmet smiled at Jonah, the boy returned the gesture.
"Mao, Ugo, Wiley, secure this area," Lehm ordered. "Valmet and Jonah, come with me."
The three commandos opened the access way on the second floor and stepped into the late afternoon sun. Suddenly, a body fell in front of them; the head of the corpse was blown open. Lehm looked up the tower and keyed his throat radio. "Thank, Lutz," he said.
"Anytime, boss," Lutz replied.
Lehm, Mao and Valmet climbed a steel ladder on the side of the building, reaching the top of the structure. They found two more sentries dead on the rooftop, victims of Lutz' accurate sniper fire. The three quickly secured the roof and established a position on the ledge, overlooking a large parking lot.
Lehm uses his binoculars to survey the parking lot. Several cars are parked there, including a half-dozen black SUV's. They can also see several dozen armed gunmen surrounding the congregation of vehicles.
"Looks like they are waiting for something," Valmet commented.
"Yeah," Lehm agreed. "Whoever he is, he is very important to have all this security."
'What's the plan, boss?" Jonah asked.
"We will wait for them, and then we will take them out."
The team didn't have to wait long. They heard the familiar twack twack twack of rotors from the distance, coming closer and closer to the plant. A huge Bell 525 Relentless helicopter appeared in the horizon, the sound of its massive five-bladed rotor and twin General Electric turboshaft engines filled the air. The HCLI team took cover as the chopper hovered for a few seconds above the parking lot, sending dust and debris flying on all directions. The Relentless deployed its wheels and landed smoothly in the clearing.
The sliding door of the chopper opened and a brawny man, obviously a bodyguard, stepped outside. He looked around before giving the passengers inside an "all clear" signal. A man dismounted from the chopper. He is short and fat, with white hair and thick mustache. The man is well-dressed in a black tailored suit and high-sheen alligator shoes.
"Ivan Govorov, the Russian mob boss," Lehm said. He breathed a sigh of relief; at least Scarecrow was being truthful about his information.
A second man got out of the chopper. He is a tall man, thin and almost gaunt. He is wearing a full dress uniform of a Chinese general, complete with medals and hat.
"General Chin of the People's Liberation Army Rocket Forces," Lehm said. "He is Koko's main target."
"Let's take them out," Jonah suggested.
"No, wait," Lehm stopped him. "Scarecrow said there were three of them. One is a woman named Sandra Ellis. She is the weapons supplier."
A few moments later, another person stepped out of the chopper. It is a woman, a tall one, wearing a brown leather bomber jacket and blue jeans. She is wearing a baseball cap and her eyes are covered with dark aviator sunglasses.
Something is tugging on Lehm's mind. "Wait a minute, she looks very familiar."
Jonah lifted his binoculars just as the woman removed her sunglasses. Her right eye is covered with a black eyepatch. The realization came to Jonah like a punch to the stomach. His throat went dry. "It can't be…" he whispered. "She is dead…"
But it was unmistakable. The woman, who calls herself Sandra Ellis, is the same woman that killed Echo and R.
"Hex…" Lehm muttered in shock.