Chapter Nada:

June 22, 2018

“Ghast 5 to Ghast Lead!”

“Ghast Lead, here. Report.”

“Sir, we are pinned down. I have lost 2 with another 2 injured. It is that damn Armor unit, sir.”

An explosion shook the half burnt out building where Ghast Lead and his remaining three man team were hunkered down. Grey ash and brown sand fought to hide their desert camos.

“Fuck Rogers! Sir Rogers was just hit! What the fuck went wrong sir…”

Another explosion cut the last message off. Ghast Lead watched as the building across the dirt street where Ghast 4’s team had been holding up, collapsed.

Even knowing no one was there to listen Lead responded, “I’m not sure Ranger. But, someone fucked up bad.”

*** 6 hours earlier***

“Go! Go! Go!”

As the last member of the ten man Airborne Ranger team left the plane before him Lead sent a radio blurt to the General who he knew was listening in.

“Sir, Ghast team is a go! Repeat Mission is a go!”

With that, he jumped out the back of a perfectly good high altitude plane. As he fell through the upper reaches of the atmosphere, he reviewed their mission in his head.

Intel had confirmed the location of a High Priority Target. A target his government deemed necessary to take out.

The man was currently supposed to be hold up in his Estate House inside the set of buildings and dirt roads that functioned as a city in this part of the world.

The estate was a 25-acre compound lined by a two meter tall concrete fence. Guards wielding automatic weapons patrolled there perimeter at regular intervals.

Inside was a lightly wooded luxury mansion at complete odds with eh stark poverty found outside the compound. The large modern mansion was flanked by two equally large garages that held the man’s expensive collection of luxury sports cars. Tucked close behind the mansion, an Olympic sized swimming pool sat. Its’ large playboy mansion style grotto was illuminated bright enough to easily pinpoint from orbit. Its brilliance standing out crisply from the darkness of the desert community built around it.

The mission was simple. Get in unseen. Eliminate the target with as little collateral damage as possible. Then get to the extraction point as quick as possible. In, out and on your way.

Everything was going fine until Riggs hit that damned trip wire… They managed to land on target inside the Northeast quadrant of the compound undetected. No major injuries and in minutes the team was gathered. It was just like they had done a dozen times before.

Then that all changed in an explosion of fire and shrapnel. Intel had assured them there was no surveillance or traps on this area of woods. The fucking Claymore that turned Riggs into a fine red hamburger meat let Lead know, the plan was FUBAR!

Still they had a mission. With the element of surprise gone, he issued the commands and the team split into two teams. Fours team was to provide support while Lead took out the target.

The five acres of lawns that directly surrounded the mansion had guards all over it by the time they reached it. With a hand signal, Lead took his team right and 4 went left. Exactly 180 seconds later 4 opened fire drawing the guards to them.

Lead took the chase and charged his men close on his heels. They reached the mansion with no issues. Entry was a simple window smash and they were in.

Lead took out the two guards who had heard the glass breaking with a pair of controlled three round bursts. A frantic room-to-room search began. Lead was happy when they found a secondary target sitting high off his ass in a fucking Jacuzzi tub with three nude women. The asshole had to of heard the gunfire. The girls clearly had they were terrified. Yet, there he sat so doped up that he didn’t even respond when the bullets tore out the back of his head.

“Sir, this is too easy” 1 Complained.

Lead felt the hand of fate close on his throat with those words. Still, he tried to recover the situation, “Riggs would not fucking say so Private. Keep your mouth shut and eyes open!”

“Yes sir!”

Returning to the hall, they found a man and five guards running down the hall toward one of the garages. Lead took a shot, but only hit one of the trailing men. Two of turned and fired back forcing him back into the bathroom.

Peeking out he cursed seeing they had exit through the door.

Less than a minute later, he and his men ran up to the door. 1 peaked around the doorframe. A wall of lead lit up his man. His helmet stopped man shot. But, others found his unguarded face, causing his brains to explode out into the hallway.

As one the team reached grabbed a grenade and tossed it into the room. Two frags and a smoke grenade bounced against concrete before explosions and smoke changed the guards’ lives forever.

Taking point once again, Lead rushed into the room. More than two dozen men had gathered around the door. Now they were all either dead or dying. Ignoring the piles of bloody meat, he scanned the massive room. More than two dozen Ferraris, Lamborghinis and other high-end cars sat on small raised display platforms; like some kind of fucked up car show. Across the room, another door sat open next to a closed garage door. Sprinting Lead and his team of three survivors ran. Reaching the door outside 4 cut in through radio traffic.

“Sir! 6 Took out the target, but sir. He reports that he thinks it was a decoy!”

6 was an excellent sniper. If he had been watching for the target then it wasn’t a surprise he had taken the shot the moment he had it. But, the man also had an excellent eye. So if he said the target was a decoy, then Lead believed him.

Turning Lead was about to acknowledge 4 and return to the building to sweep it once more, but 4 came back over the radio.

“Lead, the other garage door just opened and sir… they have fucking tanks! Three Russian T90s!”

That was it. They had no way to deal with heavy armor assets like that. “Pull back 4. We will sweep the mansion. Get your men back to the extraction point.

The next six hours was a game of cat and mouse. A brief sweep of the mansion showed no further living souls inside. They had been led here after a decoy. It was probably a set up! Their bastard of a target was using them to take out his second in command! Intel said their military men liked the second more.

One tank followed team two through the city, heedless of civilian casualties. Lead and his team however, managed to slip their pursuer and make it back to the pinned down team two just in time to see the building collapse on them.

Looking back at his surviving men, he saw worry and fear, but mostly resolve in their eyes. Resolve to see the mission through. To get the job done. Making a couple quick hand signals that they watched closely.

8 nodded in understanding, before moving around and crawling through a crack in the wall. Ghast lead watched as his man went slowly from cover to cover. Crawling more than half the way in a low crawl. Until he reached the fallen building.

When a set of four soldiers marched by barely paying attention Lead held his breath. Then as the ground shook from the deep thrumming stiletto of a nearly 50-ton tank rolling into view he cursed; but waited.

Five minutes later he felt a tap on his shoulder nearly making him jump out of his skin. Spinning around he saw 8. Glancing behind him, he marveled he had not even seen the man come back, and he had been watching for him.

Lead mouthed “Report” silently.

8 shook his head slowly a deep frown pasted on his smudged face. He held up his clenched fist. Lead opened his hand underneath. 5 slightly damaged dog tags dropped into his open palm.

This wasn’t the first time Lead had lost men. God damn him, but he even now hoped that it wouldn’t be the last. If there was others that meant he was able to get these two men. His last two men out alive.

Placing the dogtags in his pocket. One last memento for families that would never know what their sons, fathers, and husbands died doing. He gestured for them to move on.

Exiting the back of the building, they rushed across a mostly clean street into an alleyway. Moving through the piles of garbage and filth choking the narrow alley, they froze at the next street. There not 300 meters away was one of the three tanks.

In its rush to out maneuver his other team; the tank had rolled through a building. Now though it sat there on top of the rubble… A child’s hand sticking out of the broken stones, like the rest of the garbage…

Lead was about to order them back up when the tanks hatch opened, to reveal none other than their target. The bastard was laughing through a thick dark beard common in this part of the world. Behind him, he pulled up a woman clothed from head to ankle. Her face was even concealed by a veil of cloth. The two were laughing together in voices that did not quite carry.

As three more soldiers emerged from the vehicle: their target made some animated gestures. A few seconds later, the three saluted and ran off, guns held at the ready.

The man watched them go for a few moments before he turned back to the woman. He stepped close to her, and then looked around once more, causing Lead to freeze else he be seen.

Satisfied they were alone the man yanked the woman’s robe off her to puddle on the muddy street. She stood there nude, illuminated only by the lights of the idling tank. Her dark skin contrasted with her small pert nipples poking proudly in the chill desert air.

She moved to cover herself, but the man stopped her with a word.

A tap on the shoulder made Lead look back. 8 mouthed, “Sir that is him. We should take him out now.”

Lead shook his head and gestured, “Silently. Wait.”

8 nodded accepting the wisdom.

Turning back Lead saw the man had taken the woman’s headdress off and was kissing her roughly, pants dropping to his knees.

As he shoved her against the tanks rough tread to begin his victory’ reward: lead saw the girls face. She was barely a teenager!

With the man’s back to Lead and him roughly utterly engaged, lead snuck out from cover. Moving silently, Lead drew his knife from his belt. A mere two meters from the target the girl saw him. Her tear-filled orbs met Leads and then traveled to the naked blade in his hand. She silently watched him approach, while she was roughly being bounced up and down against the still growling vehicle.

Lead let out a slow silent exhale and moved up the last few steps. Then in one silent quick movement. He pulled the man’s head back and slid the blade across his neck. With eh red smile, the targets blood burst forth. Yanking him away, Lead threw the still dying corpse away from the girl. to prevent as much blood from getting on her as possible.

Lead looked at the girl and gestured for her to follow him as he spun to leave. She shook her head and reached down to pick up her blood-splattered clothing. Lead was not going to risk his men for this girl, so with one last look at her he ducked into a nearby alley. Halfway down the narrow passage shouting could be heard from the street. Shortly afterward gunshots thundered through the night air. A flaking of mud brick near Lead’s head made him duck down and look behind him.

There at the entry to the alley stood three soldiers, guns raised and pointed.

Before they could track on his hunched form, gunfire from above tore the three men apart. Looking up 8 stood on the low roof. His smile a brilliant white contrast against his ash and dust covered face.

More gunshots from street level made him jerk suddenly. Then as if in slow motion, he fell into the alley.

“You fucking idiot! Lead seethed, “Why did you just fucking stand there!”

Moving through the alley, he made his way to where 8 had fallen, but before he got all the way, he could tell it was not looking good. The gunfire had torn through his lower pelvic region. One of the Ranger’s legs was completely missing and his hip was a bloody mess.

Shouting coming from the street told Lead he didn’t have long and by 8’s quick glance behind Lead he knew neither of them did.

“Sir it has been a pleasure. Pl…” He took a moment to spit up a mouthful of blood and maybe a bit of organ… “Please tell my wife and kids I love them…”

“Shut the fuck up Ranger. You’re going to tell them yourself.”

8 just smiled and drew his tags from around his neck. “Are you really going to pull that feminist romantic bullshit sir?”

Lead smiled and took the offered tags. Bullets zoomed past him telling him, he was out of time. As he half ran half crouched away, 8 pulled two grenades from his vest.

“Come get some. You motherfuckers!”

Lead ran across a narrow garden, tucked between buildings and into another alley before the grenades went off. Turning the corner, Lead nearly shot 7 on instinct as the squads only woman appeared like a ghost. “Sir, you fucking kicked up a hornets nest. That bitch is directing them in our direction now. We need to go!”

Not wasting time on words the two rangers misted into the dark city.

An hour before dawn they emerged 27 kilometers from the city. Their extraction point was just on the other side of the upcoming hill. Their bird was to wait until sunrise and then take off, with or without them. But at this point Lead was not worried. IN 20 minutes, they would be there.

The mission high was already starting to wear down. It had been slightly more than 30 hours since last he slept and the last couple of hours of running through nearly open terrain while avoiding detection had worn him down. But when 7 stiffened besides him, Lead stopped looking at their 6 and looked forward. Figures moved on the crest of the small hill. Their silhouette clear in the lightening sky.

Then the rumble of a tank’s engine, and blaring spotlights broke the waning nights hold.

There in the shadow of the hill one of the tanks sat. Its lights shining directly on the two Rangers.

Lead brought his rifle up to his shoulder ready to fight;7 following his lead.

A soft female laugh made the two pause. The girl stepped into the light. Her smile hidden by her veil if not her mirth.

In perfect English void of any accent she said, “Rangers lead the Way! That is your motto right, American?”

Lead frowned, his finger twitching to pull that last millimeter on his trigger. “Why?” he rasped.

She laughed again a beautiful cold sound. “That bastard lured your people here to kill my husband. I loved the man. Yes, he liked his coca and stuck his dick in anything that would stay still long enough. But, he was a good man. A good provider and protector. His men and I loved him.”

“That is why that bastard lured you here. He dare not move on my husband himself. But, you Americans…” she spit on the ground. “You self-righteous foreigners who think you always know best… Well he called you, like the dogs you are!”

Lead had heard enough; he pulled the trigger as gunfire erupted through the desert night once more…