Point of Inflection
Here we go, the finale hopefully its well-received I think this one on the whole has been so thank you for the support and I will hopefully continue the story soon. I'll leave you to enjoy as always I don't own COD but I do own M1J.
I pushed a small coffee bush out of the way it's huge leaves battering me back as I pushed through, that however wasn't the worst part, after I had gotten through the bush I was confronted by a humongous drop almost straight down.
"Well this could be a problem," I said calmly looking down the slope.
"What are you on about?" Porthos replied sliding down the slope on one knee digging his toes in to slow his descent.
When I reached the bottom I landed in an irrigation dyke. Due to the continued rainfall in the area for the last few weeks it was at least three feet deep, the water and crud flushed out the handguard and internals of my rifle which I hoped wouldn't cause me any problems in the near future.
"Try and keep it dry gents," Price ordered as he heard me trying to clear the breach on my rifle.
"I guess I should have bitten the pillow first then," I joked as I dislodged the crap from my breach flicking out a few stones and other items I did not wish to think about, this was followed by a deluge of water and a single brass cartridge. I then struggled to shut the breach after the round had ejected, "Piece of crap fucking close," I said to myself as I smashed my palm into the forward assist just about dislodging the bolt.
Jaeger overtook me in the dyke taking aim with his PSG-1 he then held up his hand to signal us to stop, "Contact, three zero metres, four times pax."
Price raised his rifle to spot what Jaeger was seeing, he then nodded to One who ducked under the water, I then followed him.
The water was so murky that I could barely see One, I roughly knew where he was by the movement of the sludge which I hoped the contact couldn't see from above. I felt him stop moving in front of me so I sat under the water, I was running low on air, I was beginning to asphyxiate. I heard a rushing sound which must have been One breaking the surface of the water I did the same raising my rifle aiming at the contact, up close I could see the pax in the contact.
They were simply four men all surrounding an old Jeep Wrangler, its paint was starting to come off I could see flecks of rust. We popped up the men noticed us but didn't immediately go for their weapons, they were too off their heads on khat to care. Price whispered through the radio to try and get more information.
"What are we dealing with?" He asked quietly, I spotted Grommit move in closer in my periphery.
"Four men, all surrounding a jeep, do we engage?" I asked Price resting my rifle on One's shoulder as he raised his M4.
"Attempt to apprehend, if that fails smoke them, just keep it quiet we're too close to the camp for anything loud," He replied cautiously. One and I moved closer I could feel the pax eyes on us I think they may have thought we were strange river turtles or something but as soon as One attempted to climb the bank the worst happened, one of them grabbed his AK and started spraying wildly at us.
We were pinned right underneath the bank only five feet or so from the pax who was emptying his rifle in our direction, after we hear the click of his rifle a few short almost micro bursts of 5.56mm fire flew over our heads.
"Nice shot Grom, you tow get out of the ditch we need to move," Price ordered. I clambered out onto the bank at the same time as One brushing off the mud and crap that the river had deposited on my clothes.
"I think I might need the Persil when we get back," I said to One sarcastically taking up a covering position whilst everyone attempted to pull themselves out of the mud.
"What is Persil?" One asked confused.
"A washing detergent," I said thinking it was obvious, how had he not heard of Persil.
"You and your Brit crap, get some Tide," He joked back, I think he was liking not actually assuming command he could relax and just soldier on, "Plus I think there's worse than mud in that water."
"Check that brother," I told him as I saw Grommit exit the dyke and take up an over watch on the other side of the road followed by Price then Syrup but Jaeger was stuck at the bottom of the bank his rifle and kit was bogging him down. I reached down holding out my hand to lift him out of the muck which he took and I hauled him up, feeling the suction of the mud pulling him back as he moved.
I moved off the road covered by the remainder of the team and covered everyone else's advance away from the contact. "Mike One Juliet, Mike One Juliet, come in, this is General Shepherd, identify," An angry groan from the gruff general echoed through our headsets.
"Shepherd, this is Price, we have proceeded onto the target zone, things have escalated, we've just had a hard contact but we are attempting to bypass and continue on mission, over?" Price told Shepherd begrudgingly, he scowled at One as he moved up past him taking a position higher on the hillside as we approached a clearing in the forest.
"Roger that, we're patching you through to SATCOM, they're giving you soul control over the geosync cam for the duration of your op. Mark the POI on your end and we'll assess from here, Shepherd out!"
"Well I guess that's on you Syrup," I nodded to the Canadian who was pulling out a tablet attempting to communicate with the satellite.
"They're not up yet," Syrup whispered placing the tablet inside his front panel in his body armour.
"We keep moving but when we get the comms, you get on it," Price ordered as we pushed up the slope seeing more and more of the camp come into view.
I shifted forwards pointing my rifle towards the camp scanning for any signs of movement, I kept looking eventually spotting an old GAZ rolling down the road towards us. "Fuck, I can see that search party in coming," I whispered through the radio freezing as they came past me by only ten feet or so.
"I see 'em," Price said simply.
"Hold up," Grommit overruled the movement, taking up the rear guard, "They've stopped, about twenty metres behind us, one guard is out, he's armed with a rather flashy AN."
I heard someone shuffle rearwards in the direction that Grommit had spoken from, "Yeah I see them," Porthos told us, I turned to look at what was happening. I spotted Grommit and Porthos aiming their weapons down the slope at the GAZ sat below us. "Now there's multiple hostiles at the bottom of the riven, three rifles, one light machine gun, looks like on has a radio." Porthos continued, "I think we should press on."
"Good plan we won't get anywhere at this rate," One calmly assessed walking past me up the treeline.
Syrup pressed up to me when he pulled out the tablet, "I've got a connection, it's weak and blurry but atleast it's something."
I nodded to him keeping one eye on the search team, Price took up an over watch looking down at what we could see of the camp from our position. "Syrup, what you got?"
Syrup scanned the screen, "Looks like we've got an area of open ground up to the village, the village itself looks like it has a church in the centre and two large structures either side of that, my guess is that the VIP is in one of those structures, sir."
"Enough of that," Price scorned Syrup, "Mark them on the scanner just for political correctness, huh One?" he prodded at the deposed master.
"Aye aye," One replied keeping his eyes on the prize in the village.
"Captain Price, this is General Shepherd, we have your targets proceed to the church and the long building, our pictures indicate both seem to contain a heavy weapons cache, from what we can make out they have a heavy mortar and several other light mortars."
"Right then, looks like we need to hit in two places at once," Porthos said calmly peering down the road towards the patrol who were packing up and returning to the camp.
"Yeah, how are we going to work this one?" I asked Price who was now only a few feet from the open ground on the village approach.
"There appears to be a ditch I can barely see it on the SATCOM but it's there, someone just needs to get across the road." Syrup paused, "that ditch should lead you straight to the church, from there we have to get someone to the long building, it's to the left from here, you'll need to head through two of the main buildings within the camp but after that it will be at your direct front up an approximate thirty degree incline."
"Who's going?" Gromit asked as he placed his machine gun across his knee.
Price looked every man in our squad straight in their eyes, he eventually came to rest on me, "You and One, will take the long house, Porthos and I will take the church, you will move as soon as we enter the church," He ordered, I could only nod in response waiting for someone to move. "Well?"
"You better get going," One said standing tall above the rest of our group who were all in a crouch trying to not draw attention from the group of men who flew past in the GAZ. "Syrup, you got anywhere that looks like a good OP?"
"Yeah, I've got a sheltered spot about two hundred metres up that ridge," He pointed up the ridge behind us.
"Hang on," I hushed the group waiting for something that I thought I had heard from the camp.
"What?" Grommit questioned.
He was about to continue but I raised my hand abruptly, "Shut the fuck up," I waved, almost as I did an old Russian Ural troop carrier. It bumped along the road I could hear the loose shaky weapons, the old AKs cracked at every bump. "I think they've passed, Price get going, we'll get to the cliff."
"Roger that, remember move on our infil," Price ordered setting off with Porthos towards the ditch leading through the camp.
"Let's move," One took charge once Price and Porthos were safely in the ditch. It took us about ten minutes to move up the ridge. Once we were there Syrup and Jaeger set up an over watch position, "Can you see them?" One asked trying to contact Shepherd on his secure channel.
"Yeah I got them, what's the haste? We rush," Jaeger paused adjusting his scope, "We rush, we die. It's a sad fact but true."
"I don't like these atmospherics, I can't ping Shepherd," One blurted frustrated still trying to reach command.
"Hey," I slapped his hand from his PTT, "Get your shit together, I can have you tweaking when we're down there." I told him angrily genuinely being annoyed at his sudden break in professionalism.
"I'll stop when I get through to command," he replied sounding like a child.
I grabbed him by the shoulder straps on his plate carrier and threw him to the floor, "Get your…." I was cut off by the sound of gunfire from the camp. "What the fuck was that?" I demanded getting down next to our over watch and observing the camp.
"That's not aimed at our guys, it came from the long house," Jaeger calmly recited following a small area around the long house.
"Fuck this, I'm breaking SOP and radio silence," I told the group as I pressed the button on my vest opening the comms with Price and Grommit, "Price, I take it you heard that fire, we're just checking in, are you still online?" I asked over the channel hoping for a response from the old man.
I received nothing for at least three minutes until a quiet series of clicks came over the radio, several dots followed by a single dash, "They're all clear," I told the group calmly so we continued the over watch. "Jaeger, you get back on them, I'll over watch the long house, let's see if we can get what those shots were," I ordered whilst One still cowered on the floor behind us.
I heard someone shuffle behind us as One clambered to his feet, he dusted himself down adjusted his plate carrier and scooped up his M4. I felt him hunker down next to me scanning the area with his scope from where we were we had a direct line of sight on the long house door.
We observed constantly I kept one eye on the door the other on a window where I thought I had seen a shadow dance past making me think it was occupied by at least one person. It was a few minutes before the door opened and three men trickled out, all were clad in expensive black suits with a large armoured vest on underneath. One even had the neck guard, shoulder pads and crotch plate, packed for a fight one might say.
"I've got two guys rolling down past me not locals, keeping my eyes on the long house Jaeger take over." I ordered.
We waited for ten minutes until we heard the jaunted crackle over the radio, "Are you sure it's them?" An unfamiliar and sinister voice echoed through my earpiece. His voice sounded foreign, eastern European maybe but speaking English? "I have wanted to meet this man for a long time, I hope he lives up to my expectations." The man continued.
"Syrup, why can I hear that?" Queried One who seemed to have regained his senses.
"It's coming from Price, as far as I can gather," He responded confused just looking at his screen trying to get further information.
"Jaeger, have you still got eyes on them?" I asked adding into the conversation.
It took Jaeger a few seconds to reply, "I can't see them directly but gauging from their last know pos, I think they're behind a group of five pax, well I say behind I think they're under the bridge." He told us, we now knew for sure that they were definitely close to the target area, we even had eastern European conformation of Russian activity.
Our small party grew silent as the conversation on the ground continued, "Yes, our informant has told us that it's definitely them," An African man replied to the eastern European, he sounded excited, probably off his head on Khat.
"Good," The euro replied.
Jaeger soon kicked into action as he followed the man, "We've got two BeeGees with one times VIP, his frame fits, Sir?" Jaeger said sounding almost quizzical.
"Yeah?" One responded harshly, he was tweaking from one emotion to the next.
"I think that's him," Jaeger said forcing me to scramble to meet where his optic was facing.
"Shit just got very real," I said following the target towards the church not thinking about who else may have been in the building.
"Captain Price, I've waited so long," The voice crackled through the radio once more.
"Price he's got a gun!" Porthos shouted which was still coming through Price's comms. A loud scuffle could be heard through the radio followed by a loud gunshot which rocked the canopy above the camp. Birds in the trees above us scattered and flew in every direction.
I felt my heart pound, then it hit me, we still hadn't proceeded towards the long house. "One, we need to move now," I ordered barging past Grommit who was still watching our six.
"Rog'," He replied bounding after me.
It took us a minute or two to get down onto the basin and the edge of the camp. I rushed out with One covering me. My back smashed into the hut behind me as I covered One to cross the several tens of meters of open ground.
"Let's get into that building," I said peering round the corner towards the long house.
"Now, whoever is still on this channel," He continued, "If you leave now, I will drop your friend off in a hospital in Monrovia," He paused again, "If you do not you will all be executed, Price was my prize now get out." He ended the conversation killing the mic with another loud shot.
"Price?" I demanded across our open channel, "Price come in." I shouted again.
"Anchor! Cool it! We cannot be compromised," One told me abruptly grabbing my hand and shaking it from my PTT, "not now, the old man's tough, we need to secure the long house."
"Rog'" I nodded proceeding to the corner of the building overlooking the road leading towards the long house.
"One…. Anchor…." A barely responsive voice echoed through the radio, they sounded weak.
"Shit, that's Porthos," I whispered to One who was covering my ass whilst I plotted our route to the long house, "Porthos, hang in there brother, we're coming to ya'." I told him knowing that we would first have to tackle the long house.
"I'll just sit tight then," Even in his state he had his humour at least.
"Anchor, move!" One ordered. I spotted my assault route I would bound up to a set of oil drums from there I would cover One right up to the house, I explained this just before bounding forwards.
I pressed my back into the drums waiting for One to move but before he did I raised Syrup on the radio, "Syrup, get on evac now, we're about to storm the long house."
"Roger that Anc, I'll raise Shepherd."
"Good get on it," I rushed to get out, just able to get back to my rifle before One burst around the corner from the building and blasted past me. He rammed his large frame into the left side of the door, he rifle bore covered my advance up onto the wooden structure. I smashed on the opposite side of the door, "Ready?" I asked raised my rifle and readying myself to open the door.
"Ready," One nodded back, he shouldered his M4 pressing the butt plate deep against himself.
I reached across tightly holding the spherical door knob, I nodded towards One grabbing the thing tighter just beginning to twist the knob slowly. Time slowed as I threw the door backwards and One flew past into the room. I heard something just as I set foot into the room, One was about eight feet in front of me. That's the point where everything went red; it shook me to the core. Tearing through the room I felt my every fibre get torn, my prosthesis parted from my leg. It embedded itself about four feet away in what was left of the ceiling.
The dust, wood and smoke settled around me, I was laid out looking down on the scorched floor. The cracks in the floor had been opened up by the event, I pressed my hand onto the floor forcing one of the dislodged floor boards out and smashing me into the floor as it gave way. I sighed grabbing one of the upright foundations, pushing my weight through it I managed to roll onto my back. It sent excruciating pain through my shoulders and neck where I had been thrown against the wall.
I checked myself over, I pulled the quick release on my body armour freeing myself which made my ribs shudder with the pain. I yanked my shirt out of my trousers lifting it up I realised that it was all black and red.
I laid back hearing the crackle emanate from the radio still attached to my plate carrier, slowly reaching across I grabbed the pouch ripping it from the plate carrier. I held it close to my face, sucked in as much air as my lungs could manage and, whilst depressing the talk button, screamed at the top of my lungs. I knew that I would be dead anyway if I was left here so I'd take my chances that the guy's might come get me first.
The static came back over the radio channel, it clicked slightly which gave me hope that someone was on their way.
Ten minutes must have passed when several large shadows came into my blurred vision, I laid as still as possible not knowing who they were but I could hear them and after several sentences I realised that they were not friendly. I heard the clack of an AK but this was not followed up by a bang.
"Let him go," One of the shadows said as I was picked up off the ground, "If you follow, you will fall," They demanded into my face throwing me back on the ground, "Take Price to the chopper."
I felt my breathing slow and it became more laboured, this was a bad sign for me as it meant that my lungs were beginning to collapse. I struggled to breathe laying on the floor it seemed to last for an age before I heard distant gunshots, followed up by a flurry of engines revving.
I waited for something to happen however I didn't have to wait long, "Anchor!" A voice shouted which I could just about hear as breathing was becoming more difficult, I was having to force the air into my lungs almost manually. "Shit!" The voice shouted as a shadow covered me I felt them holding something against my chest.
"Help me," I tried to reach out but as I did I felt a sharp pain in my side. I felt my heart speed up and then crash, it had stopped but suddenly it restarted, I felt a thud, then another and another until I was able to feel like my body was functioning again by itself.
The pain had decreased and my vision stopped being so blurry I could actually identify the people around me, Jaeger and Syrup were crouched over my body, I didn't know where Grommit was but that didn't matter to me at that time.
I coughed causing a shooting pain to emanate through my chest, "Syrup," I spoke, I was feeling very weak, "You need," I coughed again, "to put in a chest drain, my lung on my right side has collapsed." I pause trying to regain my breath, "you have to put in a chest drain," I ordered still squirming from the shock.
"How?!" Syrup exclaimed obviously the stress was overwhelming.
"Grab the rear of my carrier," I told him pointing to the rear plate which had parted when I used the quick release. He hurriedly passed me the back of the carrier. I tore open the pocket and retrieved a long, off peach coloured, tube with a sharp needle at one end. "Place this in the right side, four ribs down from my armpit," I told him calmly passing him the array of tubing.
His hands shook as he took the tube and needle, "Are you sure?" He asked, I just nodded I knew that the pain would only get worse if one wasn't inserted soon. "How deep?" He shook brushing my skin with the needle tenderly.
"Four centimetres, you'll feel some resistance after about an inch," I paused failing to breathe, "You need to push through it, that's just the intercostal muscles."
He took a deep breath and I shut my eyes trying to relax my chest, so it would be as smooth as possible for Syrup to insert the drain. I felt the needle start its drive into my chest, it seemed to take an age but I could feel the needle was straight and true.
I heard Jaeger scream as he started to fire his PSG, "Contact, they're fucking back!" He hammered off rounds in a way I never thought he could. I continued to feel Syrup pushing in the needle until it went through my intercostal muscles and the pressure exploded out of the drain forcing a cough from my now convulsing body.
Syrup then picked up the fight next to me firing his rifle the short sharp bursts of automatic fire rocked my semi fluid filled chest. I saw a target attempt to flank our position they had a t-shirt around their face and were bare chested, I couldn't see their weapon but I still reached down for my 5-7. Swapping it to my left hand I fired about six shots seeing the figure drop to the floor I relaxed but the fire around me continued.
"Syrup where the hölle ist der unterstützung?" Jaeger broke into his native tongue.
"Fuck knows!" Syrup replied taking cover and throwing Jaeger his C8, "Romeo six tango, this is Mike one Juliet, where the fuck are you?" Syrup exclaimed into his headset, intermittently firing his revolver.
"Hang on in there," The radio on Syrup's chest rattled, "Support in two mikes!"
"Syrup, check my eleven, Grommit and Porthos crossing," Jaeger shouted emptying the magazine on the C8.
"Roger," Syrup replied scooping up Jaeger's PSG and dumping all of his magazines on the floor next to Jaeger. I slumped against the wall which they were engaging the enemy from and spotted a figure laying face down on the floor covered mostly by fallen rubble that had fallen during the explosion. They had no clothes on the top half of their body with deep running wounds leaking into the gaps on the wooden floor. Their bottom half was twisted at an unnatural angle with what looked like their femur being dislocated and poking into the pocket of their combats.
"One's down!" I mustered the ability to screech in my broken voice, the act of doing so tore my larynx which sent blood coursing down my face.
"Where?" Grommit shouted as he placed a bleeding Porthos next to me, I didn't have the energy to speak with my torn mouth so I pointed in the general direction of the rubble pile. "Oh fuck!" Grom replied shooting over to the pile and digging deep into the pile attempting to free One.
"Mike One Juliet, keep your head down!" A voice crackled over the radio followed shortly by a familiar comforting sound. It sounded like tearing paper or a zip undoing, this was followed by utter devastation on the other side of the wall. Death rained from the sky onto the assailants ending the firefight instantly.
"Fucking hell!" We chorused as the Thunderbolt finished its run tearing up the area in front of us.
"Mike One Juliet, friendlies coming out of the treeline to your five," The female voice signed off for the last time before a charge of at least twenty burley soldiers emerged from the trees storming the village eliminating the remainder of the assailants.
Syrup turned to face the lead soldier whom he recognised as did everyone else but before he could react they spoke, "So Deuvea, what's the SITREP?" She spoke sounding like the position that she was fulfilling.
"Three men down, two stable, one unknown, but we need to bug out fast." He shot back scanning the area for possible reinforcements.
"Rog', Si get on that unknown, CZ get a perimeter, Deuvea and Kraut go with them and help with that ring," She ordered to the two heavily built men.
She lent over me looking into my eyes, "You okay?" She quizzed wiping the blood from my face with a piece of bandage. I just raised my hand giving her the OK, to which she went to work on Porthos with her assistant.
I just watched the soldier that she sent to work on One, he and Grom had managed to pull all the rubble off and were starting to see if they could help. They rolled One over in the process the skin on the front of his body peeled off, however One didn't react. The soldier immediately went down to check him over.
After a couple of minutes the two men stood up and turned to face the officer, "He's T4, we'll stretch him and let's get that evac in here."
"Shit!" The woman exclaimed from next to Porthos, she then sighed grabbing her radio, "Put him on a stretcher, I'll get us out." She continued before speaking loudly into her radio, I didn't listen I just watched as they placed One on the stretcher.
As he fell onto the canvas he shuddered, "Wait he's still there!" I attempted to shout.
Porthos just reached out to me, "He's gone mate." He tapped me on the shoulder as Grom and the soldier took One away to a pre-dictated LZ.
I could hear the sound of the Osprey's coming in overhead, their rotors whipped through the air making the treetops shiver with the down draft, "Come on, let's get to the LZ," The woman told me whilst hoisting me to my feet supporting my ribs and keeping me immobile in the left shoulder which helped my ribs.
I felt the down draft batter me as I was run up the ramp and sat on the seat opposite the motionless carcass of One, I spent the entire flight back in fixed on his bloodied remains. His face was tilted towards me with his eyes closed, however every bump in the ride made his eyelids jump up exposing his reddened eyes, which twitched with his head jumping this didn't aid my thinking he was still there.
The Osprey started it's descent onto the base which meant we were safely back in Liberia, the vehicle shuddered as it touched down on the dusty earth which the camp was situated on.
The ramp slowly dropped letting in a cloud of dust into the cargo hold, I couldn't see much through the dust storm but I did make out a figure from next to me grab the top of the stretcher and run off the vehicle. I waited as without my prosthesis I couldn't move anywhere with much dignity. I watched as the officer and Jaeger carried Porthos out of the Osprey. After about a minute a very large framed man wandered onto the ramp, I couldn't make out much as they approached until they split in two with one face I had really wanted to see.
"Mate, you look like shit that's been shat on," The droll Scot sounded off as he scooped me up under one of my arms whilst a smaller man with the Canadian flag on his lid did the otherside.
"Aye, but you have this fine wannabe Briton to thank for me not being dead as a door mouse," I thanked tapping Syrup on his helmet.
"Let's just get you stitched up and a new leg, you're a bit crap without one," Syrup laughed as we entered the dust storm which confronted us, "Fucking hell," Syrup complained taking in a large breath of crud and crap.
The female officer sprinted up to us, checking my ribs out and then pointed to the medical tent, "Get him in there, you'll be alright mucker."
I hope you have enjoyed this story it's taken long enough to finish but it's there now so again thank you for the support and I will try to continue the series in the near future …..PEACE!