Whole Hog
Member
Okay, Steve just nailed the soundtrack.
Welcome Back, Mr. Nightcrawler
- Thread starter Nightcrawler
- Start date
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Nightcrawler
Member
...And the Horse you Rode in On
It was raining when it began.
The warning klaxon was screaming as I ran outside. I'd thrown my battle rattle on over my street clothes, grabbed my bug-out bag, and had my .44 drawn. I hadn't yet put a magazine in my FAL.
Not a moment after I stepped outside did it begin. A French-made M3 VTT armored car smashed through the gate of our compound, 7.62mm machine gun firing wildly. Desert camouflage-clad soldiers, carrying a mix of FAL and FNC rifles, began to pour in after it.
It was the Qatari Army. They'd finally come for us.
But Dead 6 wasn't going down without a fight.
A group of Qatari soldiers was cut down by a long burst of machine gun fire. I looked to my right and saw Frank, our armorer, behind cover, using an M240 machine gun to provide fire.
An instant later, the APC exploded, it's small turret popping off like a bottlecap. Someone had nailed it with an RPG.
But the soldiers kept coming. Illumination flares had been fired above the compound, and it was very well lit. A truck parked near the gate was burning, and it was chaos.
Sarah. I had to get her out. I hopped the wall to the porch of her villa and opened her door. She was just behind it, a Browning 9mm pistol in hand.
"What's going on?" she asked me, scared but calm.
"The Qataris," I said. "We gotta go."
"What about everybody else?"
"Only one way out. We've all got to go out the same way. Let's go!"
"Wait!" I turned to her. Before I could say anything she kissed me.
"I love you, Michael."
"I love you too. Let's go! Keep low and stay behind me!" From the porch of her villa, I could see a Qatari soldier running towards the Big Boss' office. Taking aim, I led the running soldier a little bit.
The big .44 barked, and the soldier, a good thirty yards away, crumpled to the pavement in a puff of blood. The Qataris didn't wear body armor.
Another soldier, a skinny one with a thin moustache, carrying an FNC, appeared to my left. A .44 slug went into his chest before he could raise his rifle, and he collapsed onto the wall that separated Sarah's porch from the next one down.
Ducking down, I holstered the revolver and inserted a magazine into my FAL. I turned on the Aimpoint, put the stock in the pocket of my left shoulder, and scanned for targets.
BOOM! The door of the office exploded into splinters and smoke. Someone had launched a rifle grenade. All around, Dead 6 operatives were forming up and making their counterattack. A few who went out with their hands up were cut down by machine gun fire. The Qataris weren't taking any prisoners.
Through the middle of this carnage, Sarah and I sprinted across the street of our compound, and made our way to Big Boss' office. The door and part of the front wall were blown off, and we dove in just in time to avoid being stitched by automatic fire.
Big Boss was laying on the floor, wounded in the stomach and bleeding badly. Sarah and I crouched down beside him. He looked up at us from his one eye.
"Take this," he said, handing me a blood-stained flash drive.
"What is it?" I asked, looking back out the hole in the wall, scanning for threats.
"Everything there is to know about Project Heartbreaker...about Dead 6. Gordon...Gordon destroyed the others. I think he...he set us up. He told them. Go..."
"I'm not leaving you here, Boss!" I said.
"Go God damn it," he said. "Don't worry, son, they won't take me alive." His Model 66 revolver was in his right hand. I nodded, pocketed the flash drive, and without looking back, Sarah and I left him. I never learned his name.
The compound was still erupting into a gun battle. On my left, pushed against the back wall, were my fellow Dead 6. They'd taken up positions behind walls, vehicles, whatever cover they could find. They were well armed and well entrenched. On my right were the Qatari soldiers. They had to pour in on foot now, as the burning APC still blocked most of the gate, and they couldn't get anymore vehicles in. The assault was costing them dearly.
The problem was, of course, that we had to get out of that gate also. It was the only way out.
We crouched behind the thick stone wall the ringed the porch of the office, and I aimed my FAL over it. As I could acquire Qatari soldiers in the reticule of my Aimpoint, I'd fire off a shot or two.
I ducked behind the wall, changing magazines and making sure Sarah was alright when Tailor appeared beside me. He had his M4A1/M203 in his hands and a LAW rocket slung over his back.
"What the **** happened to you? Nevermind. We gotta get the **** outta here!" He said. "We're going to make a push for the gate in a minute. You ready?"
"Yeah," I said, hitting the bolt release and chambering a round. I held out my right hand, balled into a fist, and he bumped it with his left.
"Let's ****in' do this," he said, grinning. Crazy bastard was actually enjoying himself.
The firing all stopped suddenly. No more Qatari soldiers could be seen coming into the gate. What the hell? Taking advantage of it, we began to leapfrog our way towards the gate. He'd hop a porch wall and provide cover while I did so, then we'd both provide cover for Sarah, who was armed only with a pistol. The rest of Dead 6 began to move towards the gate, most using the cover provided by the porches and walls of the villas as they did so.
A moment later, we found out why there'd been a lull in the fighting. A twelve foot wide section of wall, just to the left of the gate, exploded in a deafening roar, sending pieces of the stone wall high into the air. The ground rumbled, and the three of us hit the deck.
They'd blown the wall. More soldiers appeared in the newly formed breach, and they began flowing into the compound. Many of them were killed as they came in, but I could see my fellow Dead 6 being killed around me.
At that moment, I realized that we weren't going to make it out of there alive.
We weren't going to go out without a fight, though. The three of us continued to leapfrog forward. We'd gotten about four porches ahead when the Qatari soldiers began laying on the fire. Dead 6 was getting close to the gate, though.
Avoiding the fire, Sarah and I crashed to the deck behind the stone wall. I could see rounds striking the wall above me and I could hear them hitting the wall I was hiding behind. Tailor was one porch ahead of us.
I popped up, and there was a Qatari soldier, pointing his own FAL at me, not five feet from me. My rifle was shouldered, whereas he was holding his at the hip. My stubby carbine barked, and a .308 TAP round exploded out of his back. He hit the pavement as I scanned for threats.
I saw something flying through the air.
"GRENADE!" I screamed, pushing Sarah back down. BOOM! I popped back up, rifle shouldered, pointing outwards.
"GO!" I yelled at her. "I've got you covered!" She looked up at me, nodded, and moved to hop over the wall. Tailor was now two porches ahead, firing off bursts from his M4 while a cigarette hung from his mouth.
Just as Sarah was standing up, a group of Qatari soldiers appeared in my view, from behind the burning APC. They were firing at us in full auto.
It happened so fast. Sarah stood up, placed a hand on the wall to jump over it, and moved.
The rounds caught her in mid air, tearing through her and splattering her blood on the wall behind her. She fell back to deck of the porch, unmoving.
I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. All I could do was sit there and stare at her. I crawled to her, my FAL dragging on the deck as it hung from my sling, and held her against me.
I waited for what seemed like an eternity. I waited for the calm to wash over me, for the adrenaline to kick in, for my survival instinct to take over.
But it didn't come. The sounds of the raging battle faded, until I could hear my breathing and my heartbeat above everything else. I just sat there, holding her lifeless body against me, eyes wide.
Somewhere in the distance, I thought I could hear Tailor screaming at me. I looked up at him. He was standing above the porch wall directly in front of me, trying to keep low, yelling at me that we needed to go.
I just couldn't move. I looked down at Sarah. The necklace I'd bought for her was around her neck still. A chip had been taken out of it where it had been nicked by one of the bullets that had killed her.
I thought I heard Tailor yell 'grenade'. Suddenly, the air was filled with smoke and debris, and all I could hear was a high pitched tone. I was on my back, away from Sarah, but her necklace was still in my hand.
I looked over at her. I couldn't see well. I realized that blood was pouring into my right eye. I had a wound above my eyebrow and blood was streaming down my face.
I reached out to her, but she was moving away from me, and I was losing her.
My last conscious thought was the realization that someone was dragging me away.
TO BE CONTINUED...
It was raining when it began.
The warning klaxon was screaming as I ran outside. I'd thrown my battle rattle on over my street clothes, grabbed my bug-out bag, and had my .44 drawn. I hadn't yet put a magazine in my FAL.
Not a moment after I stepped outside did it begin. A French-made M3 VTT armored car smashed through the gate of our compound, 7.62mm machine gun firing wildly. Desert camouflage-clad soldiers, carrying a mix of FAL and FNC rifles, began to pour in after it.
It was the Qatari Army. They'd finally come for us.
But Dead 6 wasn't going down without a fight.
A group of Qatari soldiers was cut down by a long burst of machine gun fire. I looked to my right and saw Frank, our armorer, behind cover, using an M240 machine gun to provide fire.
An instant later, the APC exploded, it's small turret popping off like a bottlecap. Someone had nailed it with an RPG.
But the soldiers kept coming. Illumination flares had been fired above the compound, and it was very well lit. A truck parked near the gate was burning, and it was chaos.
Sarah. I had to get her out. I hopped the wall to the porch of her villa and opened her door. She was just behind it, a Browning 9mm pistol in hand.
"What's going on?" she asked me, scared but calm.
"The Qataris," I said. "We gotta go."
"What about everybody else?"
"Only one way out. We've all got to go out the same way. Let's go!"
"Wait!" I turned to her. Before I could say anything she kissed me.
"I love you, Michael."
"I love you too. Let's go! Keep low and stay behind me!" From the porch of her villa, I could see a Qatari soldier running towards the Big Boss' office. Taking aim, I led the running soldier a little bit.
The big .44 barked, and the soldier, a good thirty yards away, crumpled to the pavement in a puff of blood. The Qataris didn't wear body armor.
Another soldier, a skinny one with a thin moustache, carrying an FNC, appeared to my left. A .44 slug went into his chest before he could raise his rifle, and he collapsed onto the wall that separated Sarah's porch from the next one down.
Ducking down, I holstered the revolver and inserted a magazine into my FAL. I turned on the Aimpoint, put the stock in the pocket of my left shoulder, and scanned for targets.
BOOM! The door of the office exploded into splinters and smoke. Someone had launched a rifle grenade. All around, Dead 6 operatives were forming up and making their counterattack. A few who went out with their hands up were cut down by machine gun fire. The Qataris weren't taking any prisoners.
Through the middle of this carnage, Sarah and I sprinted across the street of our compound, and made our way to Big Boss' office. The door and part of the front wall were blown off, and we dove in just in time to avoid being stitched by automatic fire.
Big Boss was laying on the floor, wounded in the stomach and bleeding badly. Sarah and I crouched down beside him. He looked up at us from his one eye.
"Take this," he said, handing me a blood-stained flash drive.
"What is it?" I asked, looking back out the hole in the wall, scanning for threats.
"Everything there is to know about Project Heartbreaker...about Dead 6. Gordon...Gordon destroyed the others. I think he...he set us up. He told them. Go..."
"I'm not leaving you here, Boss!" I said.
"Go God damn it," he said. "Don't worry, son, they won't take me alive." His Model 66 revolver was in his right hand. I nodded, pocketed the flash drive, and without looking back, Sarah and I left him. I never learned his name.
The compound was still erupting into a gun battle. On my left, pushed against the back wall, were my fellow Dead 6. They'd taken up positions behind walls, vehicles, whatever cover they could find. They were well armed and well entrenched. On my right were the Qatari soldiers. They had to pour in on foot now, as the burning APC still blocked most of the gate, and they couldn't get anymore vehicles in. The assault was costing them dearly.
The problem was, of course, that we had to get out of that gate also. It was the only way out.
We crouched behind the thick stone wall the ringed the porch of the office, and I aimed my FAL over it. As I could acquire Qatari soldiers in the reticule of my Aimpoint, I'd fire off a shot or two.
I ducked behind the wall, changing magazines and making sure Sarah was alright when Tailor appeared beside me. He had his M4A1/M203 in his hands and a LAW rocket slung over his back.
"What the **** happened to you? Nevermind. We gotta get the **** outta here!" He said. "We're going to make a push for the gate in a minute. You ready?"
"Yeah," I said, hitting the bolt release and chambering a round. I held out my right hand, balled into a fist, and he bumped it with his left.
"Let's ****in' do this," he said, grinning. Crazy bastard was actually enjoying himself.
The firing all stopped suddenly. No more Qatari soldiers could be seen coming into the gate. What the hell? Taking advantage of it, we began to leapfrog our way towards the gate. He'd hop a porch wall and provide cover while I did so, then we'd both provide cover for Sarah, who was armed only with a pistol. The rest of Dead 6 began to move towards the gate, most using the cover provided by the porches and walls of the villas as they did so.
A moment later, we found out why there'd been a lull in the fighting. A twelve foot wide section of wall, just to the left of the gate, exploded in a deafening roar, sending pieces of the stone wall high into the air. The ground rumbled, and the three of us hit the deck.
They'd blown the wall. More soldiers appeared in the newly formed breach, and they began flowing into the compound. Many of them were killed as they came in, but I could see my fellow Dead 6 being killed around me.
At that moment, I realized that we weren't going to make it out of there alive.
We weren't going to go out without a fight, though. The three of us continued to leapfrog forward. We'd gotten about four porches ahead when the Qatari soldiers began laying on the fire. Dead 6 was getting close to the gate, though.
Avoiding the fire, Sarah and I crashed to the deck behind the stone wall. I could see rounds striking the wall above me and I could hear them hitting the wall I was hiding behind. Tailor was one porch ahead of us.
I popped up, and there was a Qatari soldier, pointing his own FAL at me, not five feet from me. My rifle was shouldered, whereas he was holding his at the hip. My stubby carbine barked, and a .308 TAP round exploded out of his back. He hit the pavement as I scanned for threats.
I saw something flying through the air.
"GRENADE!" I screamed, pushing Sarah back down. BOOM! I popped back up, rifle shouldered, pointing outwards.
"GO!" I yelled at her. "I've got you covered!" She looked up at me, nodded, and moved to hop over the wall. Tailor was now two porches ahead, firing off bursts from his M4 while a cigarette hung from his mouth.
Just as Sarah was standing up, a group of Qatari soldiers appeared in my view, from behind the burning APC. They were firing at us in full auto.
It happened so fast. Sarah stood up, placed a hand on the wall to jump over it, and moved.
The rounds caught her in mid air, tearing through her and splattering her blood on the wall behind her. She fell back to deck of the porch, unmoving.
I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. All I could do was sit there and stare at her. I crawled to her, my FAL dragging on the deck as it hung from my sling, and held her against me.
I waited for what seemed like an eternity. I waited for the calm to wash over me, for the adrenaline to kick in, for my survival instinct to take over.
But it didn't come. The sounds of the raging battle faded, until I could hear my breathing and my heartbeat above everything else. I just sat there, holding her lifeless body against me, eyes wide.
Somewhere in the distance, I thought I could hear Tailor screaming at me. I looked up at him. He was standing above the porch wall directly in front of me, trying to keep low, yelling at me that we needed to go.
I just couldn't move. I looked down at Sarah. The necklace I'd bought for her was around her neck still. A chip had been taken out of it where it had been nicked by one of the bullets that had killed her.
I thought I heard Tailor yell 'grenade'. Suddenly, the air was filled with smoke and debris, and all I could hear was a high pitched tone. I was on my back, away from Sarah, but her necklace was still in my hand.
I looked over at her. I couldn't see well. I realized that blood was pouring into my right eye. I had a wound above my eyebrow and blood was streaming down my face.
I reached out to her, but she was moving away from me, and I was losing her.
My last conscious thought was the realization that someone was dragging me away.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Last edited:
CNYCacher
Member
Oh MAN!
Speechless. . .
Speechless. . .
the 22 junkie
Member
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111111111oneoneoneeleventyone
Nightcrawler
Member
Rain
I don't feel a thing
and I stopped remembering
The days are just like moments turned to hours
Mother Used to say
if you want, you'll find a way
But mother never danced through fire showers
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Is it right or is it wrong
and is it here that I belong
I don't hear a sound
Silent faces in the ground
The quiet screams, but I refuse to listen
If there is a hell
I'm sure this is how it smells
Wish this were a dream, but no, it isn't
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Am I right or am I wrong
and is it here that I belong
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Why do I feel so alone
For some reason I think of home
I don't feel a thing
and I stopped remembering
The days are just like moments turned to hours
Mother Used to say
if you want, you'll find a way
But mother never danced through fire showers
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Is it right or is it wrong
and is it here that I belong
I don't hear a sound
Silent faces in the ground
The quiet screams, but I refuse to listen
If there is a hell
I'm sure this is how it smells
Wish this were a dream, but no, it isn't
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Am I right or am I wrong
and is it here that I belong
Walk in the rain, in the rain, in the rain
I walk in the rain, in the rain
Why do I feel so alone
For some reason I think of home
Taurus 66
Member
I hope your friend isn't sticking you with a nine! 
sm
member
Soundtracks
Last Scene:
"Dreams" - Fleetwood Mac
Last Scene:
"Dreams" - Fleetwood Mac
BluesBear
member
[voice=Bugs Bunny]
Ehhhh we lose more leading ladies that way.
[/voice]
[voice=William Conrad]
Oh Ratspit.
He lost the girl again.
Will our Hero ever find lasting true love?
Will he find his way back home?
Will he ever find another plastic Godzilla?
Well YOU can find out more in our next episode...
He Left Her Parts In Some Dark Duckout
or
Kind Of A Drag
[/voice]
Ehhhh we lose more leading ladies that way.
[/voice]
[voice=William Conrad]
Oh Ratspit.
He lost the girl again.
Will our Hero ever find lasting true love?
Will he find his way back home?
Will he ever find another plastic Godzilla?
Well YOU can find out more in our next episode...
He Left Her Parts In Some Dark Duckout
or
Kind Of A Drag
[/voice]
ilcylic
Member
Johnny Cash (or Glenn Danzig, take your pick) - "Thirteen":
Front 242 - "Headhunter"
Front 242 - "Headhunter"
Nightcrawler
Member
Desolation
"Oh my God..." was all that Jeff could say. I looked down at the can of Dr. Pepper in my hand, fighting back tears. I hadn't told that story to very many people since it'd happened, and it hadn't gotten any easier.
"It was my fault, you know," I said. "She trusted me. I told her to go. I told her I had her covered. She trusted me and it got her killed."
"Dude...look, man, its..." I cut him off.
"So much blood on my hands, Jeff. So much death. Never bothered me much. Oh, I got the shakes and some nightmares, but for the most part? Like playing a damned video game. I'd buried friends before, but nothing so close to home. It gave me a lot to think about. I wondered if God was punishing me, if that had been my comeuppance for leading the life that I'd led. I'm sure it sounds silly now, but when you're in shock and grief, weird thoughts go through your head."
"What did you do?"
"I woke up in a safehouse somewhere in Doha. I was in a dark room, stripped of my combat gear, and laying on a bed. Sarah's necklace was on the table next to the bed, along with my glasses. Somebody'd patched me up, too. I'd gotten blown up pretty good. Nothing serious, though."
"What about Dead Six? What did you guys do?"
"It was pretty bad, Jeff. From our compound, only a handful had made it to the safehouse. Myself, Tailor, Frank the Armorer, and a couple of guys I didn't know. We had to get out of the country, but obviously, we weren't gonna go to the airport and hop on a Qatar Airways flight."
"What about the rest of the Dead Six compounds?"
"I don't know what happened to them or how many got out. Hell, I don't even know who dragged me to safety. Tailor thought I'd been killed, and no one saw who it was. Poor bastard probably got himself killed for his trouble."
"Sorry, man."
"It's...alright. I had to tell the story. It just...it still hurts. It was worse then, Jeff. I was...broken. I'd completely lost my will to live." Jeff just looked at me. I suppose that had I been in his position I'd be at a loss for words too.
"So...why did the Qataris attack? How did they find you guys?"
"It was Gordon. Gordon Willis. He was so pissed off that in addition to disavowing all of us, he told the Qataris where we were in exchange for ending the diplomatic crisis with the US. He'd brought us over here, set us up, and left us to die, just to cover his own ass. I wonder if I hadn't pulled my gun on him if he'd have done that. I wonder if that was all my fault, too."
"No man. It was his fault. He..."
"I know, I know. He was likely planning it from the start. His department looked good, Project Heartbreaker accomplished most of its objectives, and he had Montalban's laptop with all of his account numbers on it. With Montalban dead under such mysterious circumstances, his friends and associates wouldn't be able to track Gordon down. A couple of blind transactions and boom! Tens of millions of dollars stolen without a trace."
"But how did you guys get out of the country?"
"I'm not going to bore you with the details. It was pretty boring, actually. We mostly laid low in the safehouse. I didn't leave that house for more than a month, and hardly left the room they had me in while I was there. I..." I sighed. "I seriously considered killing myself. But...eventually, things cooled off. The Qataris declared victory over the 'insurgents', and with a few good bribes Frank, Tailor, and myself were able to get on a freighter to Dubai."
"Dubai?"
"United Arab Emirates. The Las Vegas of the Middle East. Anyway, once there, we used our alternative IDs, forged documents, you know, the usual tricks, to get out. We all went our separate ways, knowing full well that our lives were probably still in danger."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because we knew. We knew their big dirty secret. We were there. We saw. We knew names. Gordon's name, specifically. But mainly because I have this." I took a flash drive out of my pocket and laid it on the table.
"Is that..."
"Yes. It's the flash drive that Big Boss gave me."
"What's on it?"
"I don't know for sure. Tailor was a pretty good hacker in his own right, but he could only scratch the surface of this thing. I think it's all of the information on Project Heartbreaker."
"Did you just come from Dubai now?"
"No...I stayed there for only about two weeks, then went to Thailand to hide. Like I said, Jeff, I was going through a bad time, and needed the change of scenery as badly as any man ever needed one. Before you ask, no, I didn't indulge in the nightlife there. Not in the state I was in. I mostly kept to myself, stayed in my flat, and...well, you know. Misery."
"I don't know what to say, bro."
"It's okay. The...the void never goes away. But you learn to deal with it, and I found new purposes to keep me focused."
"Purposes?" Jeff asked.
"Well," I said, looking back down at the table. "I'm going to track down Sarah's mother. Her mother is her only living relative. I've got to tell her what happened to her daughter. Sarah...she deserves better than to have died anonymously. She deserves better.
"Then, I'm going to find a way to decrypt this flash drive, and I'm going expose Project Heartbreaker. I...we...we went over there because they told us to. We made a difference, too. We really hurt the bastards, Jeff. And they reward us with...that. No. It's just not right. Someone's got to be held responsible."
"What are you going to do then?"
"I'm going to find Gordon," I said, my eyes growing narrow.
"Jesus...dude, you..." I just looked at him. There was an awkard pause for a moment, then he continued.
"Just what the hell is a 'Magic Corn Booth' anyway?" He asked.
"What? Oh. Well..."
TO BE CONTINUED...
"Oh my God..." was all that Jeff could say. I looked down at the can of Dr. Pepper in my hand, fighting back tears. I hadn't told that story to very many people since it'd happened, and it hadn't gotten any easier.
"It was my fault, you know," I said. "She trusted me. I told her to go. I told her I had her covered. She trusted me and it got her killed."
"Dude...look, man, its..." I cut him off.
"So much blood on my hands, Jeff. So much death. Never bothered me much. Oh, I got the shakes and some nightmares, but for the most part? Like playing a damned video game. I'd buried friends before, but nothing so close to home. It gave me a lot to think about. I wondered if God was punishing me, if that had been my comeuppance for leading the life that I'd led. I'm sure it sounds silly now, but when you're in shock and grief, weird thoughts go through your head."
"What did you do?"
"I woke up in a safehouse somewhere in Doha. I was in a dark room, stripped of my combat gear, and laying on a bed. Sarah's necklace was on the table next to the bed, along with my glasses. Somebody'd patched me up, too. I'd gotten blown up pretty good. Nothing serious, though."
"What about Dead Six? What did you guys do?"
"It was pretty bad, Jeff. From our compound, only a handful had made it to the safehouse. Myself, Tailor, Frank the Armorer, and a couple of guys I didn't know. We had to get out of the country, but obviously, we weren't gonna go to the airport and hop on a Qatar Airways flight."
"What about the rest of the Dead Six compounds?"
"I don't know what happened to them or how many got out. Hell, I don't even know who dragged me to safety. Tailor thought I'd been killed, and no one saw who it was. Poor bastard probably got himself killed for his trouble."
"Sorry, man."
"It's...alright. I had to tell the story. It just...it still hurts. It was worse then, Jeff. I was...broken. I'd completely lost my will to live." Jeff just looked at me. I suppose that had I been in his position I'd be at a loss for words too.
"So...why did the Qataris attack? How did they find you guys?"
"It was Gordon. Gordon Willis. He was so pissed off that in addition to disavowing all of us, he told the Qataris where we were in exchange for ending the diplomatic crisis with the US. He'd brought us over here, set us up, and left us to die, just to cover his own ass. I wonder if I hadn't pulled my gun on him if he'd have done that. I wonder if that was all my fault, too."
"No man. It was his fault. He..."
"I know, I know. He was likely planning it from the start. His department looked good, Project Heartbreaker accomplished most of its objectives, and he had Montalban's laptop with all of his account numbers on it. With Montalban dead under such mysterious circumstances, his friends and associates wouldn't be able to track Gordon down. A couple of blind transactions and boom! Tens of millions of dollars stolen without a trace."
"But how did you guys get out of the country?"
"I'm not going to bore you with the details. It was pretty boring, actually. We mostly laid low in the safehouse. I didn't leave that house for more than a month, and hardly left the room they had me in while I was there. I..." I sighed. "I seriously considered killing myself. But...eventually, things cooled off. The Qataris declared victory over the 'insurgents', and with a few good bribes Frank, Tailor, and myself were able to get on a freighter to Dubai."
"Dubai?"
"United Arab Emirates. The Las Vegas of the Middle East. Anyway, once there, we used our alternative IDs, forged documents, you know, the usual tricks, to get out. We all went our separate ways, knowing full well that our lives were probably still in danger."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because we knew. We knew their big dirty secret. We were there. We saw. We knew names. Gordon's name, specifically. But mainly because I have this." I took a flash drive out of my pocket and laid it on the table.
"Is that..."
"Yes. It's the flash drive that Big Boss gave me."
"What's on it?"
"I don't know for sure. Tailor was a pretty good hacker in his own right, but he could only scratch the surface of this thing. I think it's all of the information on Project Heartbreaker."
"Did you just come from Dubai now?"
"No...I stayed there for only about two weeks, then went to Thailand to hide. Like I said, Jeff, I was going through a bad time, and needed the change of scenery as badly as any man ever needed one. Before you ask, no, I didn't indulge in the nightlife there. Not in the state I was in. I mostly kept to myself, stayed in my flat, and...well, you know. Misery."
"I don't know what to say, bro."
"It's okay. The...the void never goes away. But you learn to deal with it, and I found new purposes to keep me focused."
"Purposes?" Jeff asked.
"Well," I said, looking back down at the table. "I'm going to track down Sarah's mother. Her mother is her only living relative. I've got to tell her what happened to her daughter. Sarah...she deserves better than to have died anonymously. She deserves better.
"Then, I'm going to find a way to decrypt this flash drive, and I'm going expose Project Heartbreaker. I...we...we went over there because they told us to. We made a difference, too. We really hurt the bastards, Jeff. And they reward us with...that. No. It's just not right. Someone's got to be held responsible."
"What are you going to do then?"
"I'm going to find Gordon," I said, my eyes growing narrow.
"Jesus...dude, you..." I just looked at him. There was an awkard pause for a moment, then he continued.
"Just what the hell is a 'Magic Corn Booth' anyway?" He asked.
"What? Oh. Well..."
TO BE CONTINUED...
sm
member
Soundtrack:
"What's Left Of Me" - Waylon Jennings
I've been cheated, mistreated, broken man, defeated
No one wanted or needed any part of me
I've been bothered and shattered till my heart's torn and tattered
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been busted, disgusted, hurt by those I trusted
There's a big old hurt inside where my heart should be
I've been lied on and cried on, cheated on and spited on
Even dogs think that I'm a tree
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been rocked on and socked on, this heart of mine's been tread on
I been cryin' so long my eyes can hardly see
I've been bad lucked, half crocked till my mind is shell shocked
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been busted, disgusted, hurt by those I trusted
There's a big old hurt inside where my heart should be
I've been lied on and cried on, cheated on and spited on
Even dogs think that I'm a tree
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?...
"What's Left Of Me" - Waylon Jennings
I've been cheated, mistreated, broken man, defeated
No one wanted or needed any part of me
I've been bothered and shattered till my heart's torn and tattered
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been busted, disgusted, hurt by those I trusted
There's a big old hurt inside where my heart should be
I've been lied on and cried on, cheated on and spited on
Even dogs think that I'm a tree
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been rocked on and socked on, this heart of mine's been tread on
I been cryin' so long my eyes can hardly see
I've been bad lucked, half crocked till my mind is shell shocked
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?
I've been busted, disgusted, hurt by those I trusted
There's a big old hurt inside where my heart should be
I've been lied on and cried on, cheated on and spited on
Even dogs think that I'm a tree
Baby, are you sure you want what's left of me?...
10 Ring Tao
Member
Not cool...
the 22 junkie
Member
Might I suggest Wolfmother's "Dimension" as part of the soundtrack?
BluesBear
member
[voice=William Conrad]
Our story is building to a climax the likes of Mooselvania has never witnessed.
What will happen to the slimey Gordon?
Who cares, the only worse line in the Vegas books is the odds of Pamela Anderson winning an Academy Award with her clothes on.
Although she might be nominated for the Moby Piece Prize.
You won't want to miss our next explosion filled episode;
The Hills Have Eyes
----------------with nightvison
or
Gordon, Gordon, Gone!
[/voice]
Our story is building to a climax the likes of Mooselvania has never witnessed.
What will happen to the slimey Gordon?
Who cares, the only worse line in the Vegas books is the odds of Pamela Anderson winning an Academy Award with her clothes on.
Although she might be nominated for the Moby Piece Prize.
You won't want to miss our next explosion filled episode;
The Hills Have Eyes
----------------with nightvison
or
Gordon, Gordon, Gone!
[/voice]
yy
Member
wow, that was a good break after the last action sequence. keep the rollercoaster going. wow. I'm in the presence of great writers.
Nightcrawler
Member
Well, that one part is going to be kind of hard to top, I think. At least, writing on the fly like this.
What, you guys weren't expecting a happy ending were you?
What, you guys weren't expecting a happy ending were you?
Dionysusigma
Member
Well... but... but... *pfft*
*pouts*
Still woulda been nice if she hadn't... well, died.
Ah well. The fact that you're getting a reaction is always a good sign.
*pouts*Still woulda been nice if she hadn't... well, died.
Ah well. The fact that you're getting a reaction is always a good sign.
Nightcrawler
Member
Tell me about it.
But...when I came up for the idea for this story, one of the important points is that something horrible happened to NC while he was over there, thusly being the catalyst for the change that a character must go through in order to complete the story.
Besides, I've always wanted to try to write something that was emotionally gripping, or at least, moreso than my usual works.
Honestly, I expected more of a reaction from the tragic dramatic climax. Hardly but a couple replies, only. Maybe I'm slipping...
It's important to remember that though this story is told in the first person, "Nightcrawler" is not me. He bears more than a passing resemblance to me, I expect, except:
-He's in better shape
-He's a better shooter
-He has deep-rooted emotional problems (now, anyway)
-He's even more inept with women than I am, because I think an action hero that can't talk to girls hilarious.
Thusly, having established my alter-ego as a character unto himself, I'm free to kick him around as much as need be. Whatever it takes, so long as the story gets told.
You do get attached to your characters. I actually felt bad writing that, and seriously considered going a different route with it.
just one question
Member
- Joined
- Apr 17, 2006
- Messages
- 84
You are not slipping; it's still a great story.
I am interested to see how the stories will link up though....one of them has to die. I don’t see em' (the "actors") getting together and saying "lets be friends".
And with slashing and such....I wonder is NC going to have any scars, or will he look like nothing happened the next day like in the movies? (Odd question, I know but I am curious) I wanted to know because it said he got slashed in the face....won't it be easier to identify him now if it scars?
Is corriea's part over? His guy did get the book.
I am interested to see how the stories will link up though....one of them has to die. I don’t see em' (the "actors") getting together and saying "lets be friends".
And with slashing and such....I wonder is NC going to have any scars, or will he look like nothing happened the next day like in the movies? (Odd question, I know but I am curious) I wanted to know because it said he got slashed in the face....won't it be easier to identify him now if it scars?
Is corriea's part over? His guy did get the book.
2TransAms
Member
One song comes to mind after reading the last part: Johnny Cash's cover of "Hurt".
Other songs that I thought fit (but you all might not know all of these):
Pennywise - The World (Smoking Gun)
Black Label Society - Fire It Up
Rise Against - Blood To Bleed
P.O.D. - Boom
I just read the whole thing. This is a great story. Honestly I think it would make a great comic book/graphic novel. It reminds me of the series "Losers". Quirky black-ops who got screwed by the gummint and screwed 'em right back.
Other songs that I thought fit (but you all might not know all of these):
Pennywise - The World (Smoking Gun)
Black Label Society - Fire It Up
Rise Against - Blood To Bleed
P.O.D. - Boom
I just read the whole thing. This is a great story. Honestly I think it would make a great comic book/graphic novel. It reminds me of the series "Losers". Quirky black-ops who got screwed by the gummint and screwed 'em right back.
just one question
Member
- Joined
- Apr 17, 2006
- Messages
- 84
...
I think it'd make a great book, no comics and such just a book.
I think it'd make a great book, no comics and such just a book.
Chupacabra
Member
Great stuff NC and Correia! Keep 'em coming.
Nightcrawler
Member
NC isn't so durable as other heroes. If you recall at the beginning of the story, he mentioned that he'd just gotten off of crutches? That's becuase at the end of the previous story, he'd gotten shot through the leg.
Lupinus
Member
I just read 9 pages of thread in ONE SINGLE SITTING
I want more, more dang it more!
I want more, more dang it more!
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