We grabbed a different truck from thee one we were previously sat in/on so there was room for everyone inside rather than just two seats. The annoying dog, bobble head in the front as always as we drove through the dense jungle and I sharpened my daggers, ready for anything. Our job was an 'if' type of job, meaning it could turn to crap at any given moment so you had to be prepared. Clay was in the front, passenger seat with the usual tablet with a guys profile on.
"Alright, we got a drug and arms dealer named Fadil, running a home grown Paris assembly line out by the Margrated ilses river base. We find it, we paint it for a laser targeted bomb, we get the hell out." Clay gave us the basic run down. This was just like any other mission we've had. Bad guy, identify the target, get out before the bombs clear the problem. "No muss, no fuss."
"For that, they need us?" Roque asked from my right. I was sat in the back seat, Jensen on my left (if you get the joke, awesome) with Roque and Cougar against my right.
"Would you rather take on 50 dudes with A.K's?" Pooch asked from the drivers seat as the truck went over a bumpy patch. No one was talking and Pooch just ended up laughing as we rolled through the dense jungle and to the destination.
We were on a hill, high up and out of sight, Roque looking through a pair of binoculars and scouting the perimetre. "Right, I got eyes on monsieur Fadil." He announced as the rest of us stood next to the machine on the truck that painted the target once it was identified and cleared. As usual, I was on the roof and the others were in the back part that didnt have a roof.
"Paint it." Clay ordered and Pooch oved to the back of the machine.
"Show time fellers and lady. Go ahead and call me...Michelangelo." Pooch pressed a button on a controller that holographically painted a target that helicopters could pick up on radar and Jensen called the movement in.
"Drop Kick, this is Pinball, request fire mission. The target is laid and you are clear to make a run from north to south, over." He said, pretty big radio control in his hand as he sat on the back of the trucks sides.
"Roger Pinball, target is wired and locked, via 5, eta fireworks 08 mics." The person from the bomb planes replied as we started packing up from the sound of the certain reply.
"Roger, we'll break out the earplugs." Jensen finished as we all started moving. Cougar was crouching in the long grass with his sniper gun and I caught the head movement that he spotted something off.
"Boss." He said, moving two fingers in a forward motion for Clay to look and I gripped the binoculars and caught the sight as I stepped off the truck.
"Children, call it in." Clay informed Jensen as my eyes widened in the binoculars as I peered on the van emptying out children not much older than 5 at least.
"Drop Kick, we have children at target site, repeat, we have eyes on children at target sight, please advise." Jensen warned them as I took the binoculars off my eyes. They were innocent children, we couldnt bomb the site with innocent people.
"Acknowledged, maintain position." There response from the radio was, I started stepping back onto the truck.
"Maintain position, what is he talking about? Colonel?" Roque was confused, same as I, they should be stopping right now.
"Drop Kick, we highly recommend cancellation of payload delivery." Jensen advised as we started getting a bit on edge.
"Your orders stand, prep for extraction." The pilot's said back.
"Cougar." Clay said, getting Cougar to stand up and come back over to us and smashed the machine that paints the targets, with the back of his gun. "Drop Kick, this is Pinball, targeting equipment has suffered catastrophic faliure, I'm calling on site abort." Clay ordered back.
"Well, that was just stupid." Now that was a different voice than the pilots, making me snap my head to attention.
"Is this mission controller?" Clay asked.
"This is Max. Colonel Clay." The voice replied, this was slightly creepy since this channel was meant to be only for military purposes.
"No one uses names on comms, this is a secure military channel." Clay retorted.
"Is it really?" The voice replied in a macking tone to which Clay immediately responded.
"God dammit, you listen to me, there are children on site." He warned the voice in his commanding voice as if he was giving a direct order.
"And you think I didn't know that? We locked coordinates, the moment you painted. Delivery will occur on schedule, hope you had your super day." The voice responded and our comms started having screeching feedback in our ears and I took mine out for a few seconds to avoid bleeding eardrums.
"Jensen, contact the plane directly, call an abort." Clay said, hiding the panicking point in his voice.
"I'm trying, he's jamming us, there's nothing I can do." Jensen replied, running over the radio, trying to hack his way in.
"Captain?" Clay asked, I looked over the tech we brought with us, desperately trying to figure out a way, I shook my head solemnly. "There is something we can do."
"Alright, here it is, 6 against the fortress. We got maybe, what, 8 minutes before an airstrike sets to launch and fire." Roque explained as I started putting all the electronics back into place.
"Plenty of time." Clay replied, confident as ever.
"I'll drive." Pooch said before less than a minute later, the truck crashed through the wood plank gates of the base, making us all get pushed forward in our seat slightly by the force but Pooch continued driving as Cougar was standing through the sunroof, bottom half in the truck, arms and waist outside, shooting down everryone as we pummeled through the sandy base of operations. Eventually, we got to the main part of the place and Pooch pulled up, each one of us with a two hand gun and stepping out to shoot. I had my Bowie in the hand holding the back of the gun, blade facing to my back as I shot everything on target. Pooch, me and Jensen ran to the back of the truck for cover and I reloaded. "Us against 50 dudes with A.K's. Huh?" Pooch repeated his earlier choice to us, looks like we took that option.
We shot the men faster than more could join the fight, clearing out most of the hostiles and the truck looked like it wouldn't stand much more fire.
"Jensen, Cap and Pooch transport for the kids, we'll be out in 5." Clay ordered, we immediately started running to try and find something that would fit everyone in and watching out for men trying to sneak on us. We eventually found something big enough, a yellow, school bus.
"Yeah." Pooch decided.
"No." Jensen objected.
"Yeah." Pooch countered, I nodded.
"Really?" Jensen asked back, surprised.
"Why not?" Pooch asked back, setting his gun so it was only in one hand like me.
"Can you?" Jensen said, raising his eyebrows.
"Of course." Pooch said in a tone that shouted 'you doubt me?'.
"Okay." Jensen shrugged as we opened the back door and soon the children came running to us and we loaded them in.
"Clay, we got the kids, rally point 2 minutes." Pooch said over comms as I stuck mine back in after forgetting about it. There was no response save for indistinct chatter. "Clay, we gotta go, now." Pooch warned again, where the hell is he?
Suddenly, two gunshots rung out across the plain where the bus was stocked with the kids, soon, Clay came running with the last kid and everyone got in the truck, I was sat down with a small girl on my lap who was clutching a teddy bear for dear life. If it was alive, it would have choked.
"Oh, you stop for coffee in there?" Pooch asked, drivers seat again. Cougar shut the back door before climbing in and we drove off as quick as possible.
"What kind of blast radius we looking at?" Roque asked from across the bus, Jensen pulled up a screen with a wide range of blast radius. "Ok, Pooch, I'm gonna need you to make this bus go a little faster!" Roque exclaimed as my eyes widened.
"Everybody hold onto something." Clay ordered, I clutched the child and used my free hand to hold on to the railing beside me as tightly as possible since two other kids were holding my legs.
"Like right now." Roque continued before Pooch kicked it into high gear and it was the wierdest feeling I have ever had. I looked back probably not the best idea and there was a cloud of fire coming at us. I was too dirtracted to realise Pooch had just drove off a high hill and snapped back to attention when we roughly hit the ground again. I was kind of thankfull for the kids on my legs that were holding me down as well as keeping them safe so it went both ways. The children in the bus screamed as we all held on to something as the bus was pushed down the steep hill, meaning it was jumping off and back onto the floor and wasnt being very stable. I hope these guys dont get car sick.
"I got it! I got it! Baby, go, Pooch!" Pooch exclaimed as we skidded to a halt in a pile of leaves, the bus leaned to one side before settling back down to level. The kids around us started laughing and I did too, the little girl in my grip gave me a kiss on the cheek to which I hugged her back. The kids on my legs slowly stood up, both boys, giving me a proper hug as I donkey scrubbed their heads. We called up an extraction chopper and emptied out of the bus, seeing the chopper we made our way over, I held the little girls hand as she smiled up at me, but of course, Jensen ruined the moment by his talking.
"But my favourite part, was when we were completely on fire. But the shootout, that was good times." I rolled my eyes with a faint chuckle as we stepped over bits of trees and into the clearing.
"There she blows, whoa." Clay said as we ran the children over across the green grass and to the helicopter, ready for extraction. We got to the side and someone opened the door.
"Sir, there's not enough room for your team and them." The guy said, Clay looked back to us.
"Then its them." Clay said, we started lifting the kids up into the chopper, Cougar started speaking spanish to which I have no idea what he was talking about but the little girl that held my hand was the last one on. She tried handing me her bear but I handed it back, she shook her head and pushed it back to me. I took it with a gentle and caring smile.
"I'll keep him safe, keep yourself safe." I said, kissing her gently on the cheek as she wrapped her small arms around my neck. It had been the first thing I had said that day, I wasnt a big talker, I was like Cougar but i would add input if needed. She let go and I wiped some of the mud off her cheek, she giggled as she seemed to be ticklish.
"Gracias." She said, her little voice was positively adorable.
"De nada." I responded, the only Spanish I know. "Adios."
"Get them outta here." Clay told the pilot before the door was shut and the kids all waved to us as the chopper rised into the air.
"Cute little buggers, hope they make it to the court Marshall." Pooch commented as we started dismantling our guns.
"What is that? You hear that?" Roque asked, I listened, I dropped the gun part in my hand to the floor, I knew exactly what that sound was.
"Guys, listen, this is bad." Jensen said as static noises filled our comms.
"Yep." I added.
"Max, comfirmed one, Bandit locked." A pilot said over our comms.
"Understood." The voice or Max, replied. "Cobra one, kill Bandit." Max replied, we looked back to teh chopper with children and started running but it was too late, the missle had already been fired from an above plane and the chopper lit into a cloud of flames.
"No!" Clay and me both yelled, running after it as the burning remenants crashed to the floor, making us stop in our tracks. Cougar kneeled down and started muttering things in spanish as we surveyed the damage.
"That's supposed to be us." Clay stated. I looked down to the bear in my hands, slightly tattered but otherwise in good condition. I sniffed, killing the tear before it leaked and thinking about the little girls shining face and looking back to the wreckage, more tears threatened to spill but I cut them off. We all started snapping off our dog tags and throwing them into the fire. I gave mine one last kiss before flicking it away. No one was going to need it. I didnt have any family but the team.