Mission 5: Payback part 13

Continued from last week...

“What do you mean, ‘you’ve been tricked’?” Jason asked, glaring at Ryan. “These are your friends, right? Don’t you recognize your own friends?”
“No, these are not our friends,” Ryan shot back. “They’re wearing masks to disguise themselves as our friends.”
“Masks?” Jason asked, bewildered.
“It’s an IMF thing,” Ryan explained.
“What is IMF?” Jason asked.
“Oh, forget it!” Ryan shook his head.
“Silence!” cried the one who was impersonating Tim. “Or I will shoot all of you!”
“Wait, wait, wait,” Ryan held his hands out then he slowly lowered them to his side. “I’m not getting my gun, I’m slowly reaching for… these.” He snatched his shades from his belt and slipped them on. “Okay, now I’m ready, do your worst.”
“You are pathetic,” the Jordan impersonator muttered.
“A lot of people have said that,” Ryan said, holding his finger in the air in a very prophetic and cool manner. “But all of them are dead now. Turns out they were more pathetic.”
“No,” Sarah, or the one who was pretending to be Sarah, spat. “You are just lucky, but you will not be this time.”
“Or they’ve just been unlucky, but I’ll let you think about that for awhile. God knows you militants don’t have the best brains in the world.”
“Ryan, we’re prisoners here, I don’t think it’s such a good idea to insult our captors,” Emmy said in a worried voice.
“So you’re stupid too,” Jason muttered.
“A lot of people have said that too,” Ryan admitted.
“Shut up!” the fake Sarah screamed. Just then, a shot rang out. Sarah clutched her neck and fell to the ground without making a sound. The other two imperial agents ducked behind the helicopter, the one that was impersonating Jordan screamed and grabbed at his leg.
“Come on, let’s go!” Ryan yelled, tugging at Emmy’s hand and pulling her away from the gunfight.
“Who is that?” Emmy yelled above the gunfire. Then suddenly, it all stopped. The echoes of gunshots faded into the woods and all was silent.
“Ryan!” someone called. “Emmy!”
“That’s Tim!” Ryan said, he started to make his way out of the brush, but Jason grabbed his arm.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, positive,” Ryan assured him. Ryan turned around and nearly ran right smack into Tim. “Hey buddy,” Ryan grinned. “Where ya been?”
Tim laughed and shook his head. “You always were the cavalier one.”
Ryan shrugged. “Yeah sure, whatever that means.”
Tim slapped him on the back. “It’s good to have you back, Cruise.” Then he turned back towards the helicopter, “guys, I found him.”
“So what’s new?” Ryan asked.
“Oh nothing, we just had to practically escape from the Rebel base to come and rescue you though.”
“Really? It was Cathy wasn’t it? I knew she never got over our little bungle at the mall.”
“That was pretty bad,” Tim pointed out.
“Well, we got away just fine, thanks to our buddy Jason Scorn here.”
“Who?”
“Jason Scorn,” Ryan repeated. “And he’s got a plan that you need to hear.”
“What plan?” Tim asked.
“One that involves getting the emperor, for good.”

After a whole round of hugs, exclamations, and heartfelt words, (which will not be recorded here mainly because it would be really boring to read them and even more so to write them) from Sarah, and Jordan, mostly Sarah, the group entered the helicopter.
“So,” Tim ventured, as they prepared to take off. “What’s the plan?”
“Well it’s really very simple,” Ryan explained. “You see we just walk in and shoot the emperor right in the face, just like that.”
Tim stared at him. “Just like that,” he repeated.
Ryan nodded. “Just like that.”
“Are you nuts?”
Ryan heaved a long sigh. “You know, people keep asking me that and I keep telling ‘em, yeah I am okay! Can we move on?”
“You seriously agree with that plan?” Tim asked.
“Yeah, what’s not to like? It’s simple and to the point. We get in, we get out, the emperor’s dead, just what we want, right?”
“I shouldn’t be surprised,” Tim shook his head. “You always did have a knack for making things seem simpler than they are.”
“And you have one for making them seem harder than they really are,” Ryan pointed out. “Look, it’s a great plan, I wish I would have thought of it myself.”
“What’s to think of?” Tim shouted.
“Shhh, not so loud,” Ryan shushed him, motioning towards the others. “Jason and I don’t want them to know yet until we have you on board.”
“Jason and you, huh? You’re both crazy.”
“Yes, that we are,” Ryan grinned and clapped Jason on the shoulder, who just glared at him. “We’re like two peas in a pod, blood brothers--”
“Dumb and Dumber,” Tim interrupted.
“Well, I wasn’t gonna use that one, but you could.” Ryan laughed. “Jason’s like me without the spice, you know?”
Tim just gave him a blank look. “No, I don’t.”
“I’m more fun, duh.”
“What the heck is with you, man?” Tim asked.
“I gave him a shot of adrenaline before we left the terrorist’ den, must still be working,” Jason said. “About the plan, he’s leaving out a few important details, like how we’ll get in, and how we’ll get out.”
“I figured he was,” Tim glared at Ryan, who just shrugged.
“This adrenaline stuff’s like a caffeine high,” Ryan laughed.
“Someone shut him up,” Jason mumbled.
“Don’t worry,” Tim said. “You learn to ignore him. So tell me, what’s the plan?”
Jason cracked a small smile; the first time Tim had seen him smile since they’d first found him. “It’s good, I think you’ll like it.”

Katie was busy handing out rations and supplies to lines of soldiers when she was approached by Daniel.
“Care to give a poor soldier a few supplies?” Daniel asked.
Katie nearly dropped the water canteen she was holding. “Oh no Daniel, not you too?”
Daniel gave a grim smile. “Yes Katie, they need every man they can get out there.”
“But you’re not trained for combat, Daniel. You’re a doctor, not a soldier!”
“You’d be surprised, besides, they could use a good doctor.”
“No, I won’t let you go, Daniel,” Katie shook her head.
Daniel laughed. “Katie, I’m a man, I think I can make my own decisions.”
Katie grabbed Chris, who just happened to be walking by, by the arm. “Chris!” she cried. “Tell him he can’t go!”
Chris gave Katie a bewildered look. “Why?”
“Just do it!”
“Okay, okay,” Chris turned to Daniel. “You can’t go.”
Daniel shook his head. “I’m going anyways.”
“There you go,” Chris said, shrugging. “I can’t stop him.”
“Daniel,” Katie protested. “You can’t go!”
“Katie, I’ll be fine,” Daniel assured her.
“I don’t want to lose you,” Katie said, tears coming to her eyes.
“You won’t,” Daniel promised.
Suddenly, Laz coughed from back in the corner. “I hate to break this up guys, but you’re really starting to get on my nerves. This whole romance before going off to war thing is great and all, but… its kinda worn out.”
“I have to agree with him on that, could you guys take this somewhere else please?” Chris spoke up.
Katie frowned. “Why you guys couldn’t--”
“Katie,” Danny interrupted. “Ignore them.”
Katie smiled. “Okay, I will.”
“All right,” Laz said. “I’m gone.”
“Me too,” Chris seconded. They both got up and left Daniel and Katie to be alone, shaking their heads in disgust.
Just then Kayla came running up. “Hey guys, have you seen Ryan?”
Chris and Laz shook their heads. “I haven’t seen Ryan, Sarah, or Tim in a while,” Chris said glumly.
“Where the heck is Cruise when you need him anyways?” Laz asked no one in particular. “He would have said something funny, made Katie hopping mad and ruined the mood.”
“Yeah, I wish he was here,” Chris agreed. “I wonder where he is?”

“Where are we?” Emmy asked as she peered through a borrowed set of binoculars.
“The emperor’s secret getaway,” Jason replied, pointing at the beach house/fortress hidden behind the hill. “Top surveillance at this place, but not nearly as good as at the palace.”
“Then why is he here?” Sarah asked.
“Because it’s secret,” Jason replied stoically.
“If it’s secret, then how do you know it’s here?” Emmy questioned him.
“It’s secret to most,” Jason corrected himself. “Now please, no more questions; let’s get down to business.”
“Which is?” Sarah, who had still not been fully informed of the plan, continued to grill him.
“You girls sure do ask a lot of questions,” Jason said, shaking his head.
“Don’t all girls?” Tim muttered.
“I heard that, Tim,” Emmy shot back.
“Look here’s how it goes,” Jason said, laying out the plan. “Tim, Emmy, you guys will provide the distraction, while Ryan and I infiltrate the hideout. Jordan, you wait in the helicopter as our getaway pilot.”
“Yes sir,” Jordan saluted only half-mockingly.
“What about me?” Sarah asked.
“You, Sarah,” Ryan said, grinning, “Get to wait in the helicopter and copy.”
“Copy?” Sarah gave him a confused look.
“Yeah, you know, when we talk in the radio, we say, ‘do you copy?’ and you say, ‘I copy’ got it?”
Sarah glared at him. “No way, that’s a boring job.”
“Exactly,” Ryan clapped her on the shoulder.
“Look, if you’re trying to protect me, don’t. I want to go in there with you.”
Ryan just grinned and started walking towards the beach fortress. “Trust me, I’m not trying to protect you; I’m trying to annoy you.”
Sarah stomped her foot on the ground. “Well you’re doing a real good job of it!” Then she stormed off towards the helicopter.
“What was with that?” Tim asked, a frown on his face.
“Who knows?” Emmy replied, shrugging.
Tim walked up to Ryan and grabbed him by the shoulder, spinning him around. “You really seemed to tick off that young lady back there,” he said
“Who Sarah? Don’t worry about her,” Ryan said, shrugging him off. “She’s fine, we always fight.”
“How long have you known each other?”
Ryan sighed. “It feels like years, but probably only a few weeks, and I’ve been ‘dead’ for a long period of that time.”
“I’m not sure it was wise to isolate her like that,” Tim said.
“Look,” Ryan said, pointing his finger at Tim to emphasize his words. “You just stick to what you do best, which is killing, and let someone else play psychiatrist, okay?”


Ryan peered at the emperor’s fortress from their new position. “Man, this is gonna be one for the record books!” he whispered, handing the binoculars to Jason.
“If we can pull it off,” Jason added. Then he turned lowered the binoculars and turned to Ryan. “Before we go in, I want to warn you, I’m wanted by the C.I.A., which means now you are too.”
Ryan shrugged. “Psh, I’m wanted by everybody, what difference does it make?” There was a pause, “Why does the C.I.A. want you?” he ventured.
“I don’t know,” was Jason’s simple reply.
“You don’t know? How can you not know?”
“I can’t remember,” Jason said. “I can’t remember anything, I don’t even really know who I am.”
“Some sort of assassin probably,” Ryan guessed.
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“Well duh, who else can kill like that? I can assure that you’re not a construction worker, or the C.I.A. wouldn’t be trying to kill you.” There was another long pause. “So you can’t remember anything?”
“Yeah, I just said that.” Jason replied.
This was followed by yet another awkward halt in conversation. Then Ryan spoke up again, “Okay, so just wondering, but do you ever talk in an excited voice?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, your voice is always monotone, do you have any emotion?”
Jason looked at him. “No, not really.”
Ryan sighed. “So much for conversation.”
Just then they saw a flash of light in the trees a mile to their left. “There’s the signal,” Ryan said, relieved that the wait was over. “Let’s go.”

To be continued...

Mission 5: Payback part 12

Sorry about the delay guys; I promise it won’t happen again, unless there’s another delay. I wrote parts of this one while I was sick and slightly feverish so… if there’s parts where sentences are repeated and stuff, you’ll know why. If there’s parts where sentences are repeated and stuff, you’ll know why. If there’s parts where sentences are repeated and stuff, you’ll know why. Lol Sorry, I couldn’t resist resist. ;)



Continued from two weeks ago...

Tim and Sarah were quickly strapping on their equipment as they explained the whole story to Jordan.
“So… they disappeared?” Jordan asked for the third time, he appeared confused and leaned against his helicopter for support.
“Yes,” Sarah snapped, stamping her foot on the landing platform. “They disappeared; they are no longer here; we don’t know where they are. Got that?”
Jordan frowned. “Yes, but it doesn’t seem very likely that Ryan would be caught off guard. He’s a professional; he knows what he’s doing.”
“Look, all we need is a ride, flyboy,” Sarah said. “Are you going to help us, or not?”
“Of course,” Jordan replied, throwing up his hands. “Anything for Ryan, you don’t have to get so testy about it.”
“I’m not testy!”
“Yes, you are,” Tim agreed. “Too testy, you’re gonna need to calm down.”
Jordan glanced behind him too see Clarence running towards them, his arms waving. “And we’re going to need to get out of here before Clarence crashes the party,” Jordan observed.
“She wouldn’t,” Sarah said in disbelief. “Forbid us to go and look for Ryan and Emmy?”
Tim glanced at Clarence, who was now frantically motioning for them to stop and come down from the platform. “She would,” he muttered.
“All right,” Jordan said, swinging himself into the cockpit. “Prepare yourselves, we’re in for a bumpy ride.” There was a closable hole in the ceiling, which Jordan had opened moments before, that was used for aircraft. This hole was slowly closing, however, which would make the take off that much more difficult.
“The opening is closing,” Tim noted.
“I see it,” Jordan barked, flipping switches and starting the lift off. “This is gonna be close.”
“How close?” Tim yelled over the roaring engine, but Jordan couldn’t hear him. He lifted the helicopter off the landing pad and they started to rise towards the ceiling.
“That hole is getting smaller,” Sarah warned.
Jordan gritted his teeth and flew straight for the hole. “Come on!” he yelled.
“We’re gonna hit,” Tim groaned.
“No we’re not!” Jordan exclaimed. He approached the hole; it was going to be close. If one of the blades so much as scraped the sides, they were done. Jordan was fully aware of this and he was sweating bullets.
Then, as quickly as it had begun, it was over. They passed through the opening and out into the open. “Yes!” Jordan cheered, with Tim and Sarah joining in.
“We made it!” Sarah screamed. Then her face turned dark. “We could have died, I can’t believe that Cathy would do that!”
“Neither can I,” Tim agreed. “But we better get out of here.” The opening clanked shut behind them.
“There’s no going back, that’s for sure,” Jordan observed.
“Take us to him, Jordan,” Tim ordered. “Take us to Cruise.”

“So where’s Emmy?” Ryan asked Jason for the second time.
“Hang on a sec, I’m gonna give you a shot of adrenaline,” Jason replied. He took out a long needle and syringe. “You’re gonna feel this,” Jason warned.
“Ha, ha, no kidding,” Ryan chuckled nervously. “Look at the size of that thi—Aaaaa!” Jason didn’t wait for him to finish, instead he stabbed him in mid-sentence.
“Whoa!” Ryan yelled, shaking his head. “This is great, I’m ready now, man! Wait, wait,” he snatched his shades from the table in the interrogation room and stuck them in his belt since it was too dark to wear them. “Now I’m ready, let’s go.”
“Come on then, Cruise,” Jason led him through a doorway. Inside was a huge brawl, with one person in the middle, holding her own.
“Heeya!” Emmy cried, kicking one of the five men in the groin who were currently attacking her. The man groaned and fell over.
Jason pulled out his pistol and shot the other four in quick succession. “Come on, let’s go.”
“I could have taken them,” Emmy protested.
“I’m sure you could have, sis,” Ryan said. “But let’s get going.”
“Who is this guy? What’s he doing here?” Emmy asked.
“I’m here for the same reason you are,” Jason replied.
“I don’t even know why we’re here,” Ryan mumbled.
“Because we all want the same thing, the death of the emperor,” Jason informed him.
“So these guys were working for the empire?”
“No, I have no idea whose side these guys are on, they just like to blow things, including themselves, up.”
“And they like to torture people, apparently,” Ryan added.
“Yeah, but that’s beside the point.”
“What is the point?” Emmy asked as they continued to make their way through the dark underground tunnels of the terrorists’ lair.
“To kill the emperor and then disappear as if we never existed.”
“Want to go over that last part again?” Ryan shouted as they ran.
“Do you really think they’ll let us live if we just go in and shoot the emperor; no, we’re gonna have to fake our deaths or something.”
“How do you know we even want to kill the emperor?” Cruise asked.
Jason Scorn stopped and turned around; he looked Ryan straight in the eyes. “Who doesn’t?” he asked.
Ryan nodded. “Good point.”
“Come on, let’s go then, I have a plan,” Jason started running again, and Ryan and Emmy quickened their paces to catch up.
“What’s the plan?” Emmy asked.
“To kill the emperor,” Jason replied matter-of-factly. “Without getting killed in the process.”

“What do you mean ‘Laz has been put in charge of supervising’?” Cathy nearly screamed into the phone.
On the other line, Clarence winced and held the phone away from his ear. “Precisely that madam,” he replied, rubbing his ear.
“How much damage has he done?” Cathy asked in a slightly calmer manner.
“Well, he hasn’t caused as much as we thought, he’s been overruled on almost everything by Christophear.”
“Thank God,” Cathy breathed.
“Hey, I heard that!” came Laz’s voice from the other line. “Where’s Ryan? I want to speak with him.”
“He’s currently unavailable,” Cathy said coldly.
“Since when? He’s always available unless…” Laz trailed off. “You sent him on a mission without me, didn’t you?”
“I did no such thing!” Cathy lied.
“Why would you do that?” Laz cried. “He never succeeds when he goes on a mission without me.”
“Laz, he doesn’t succeed when you go with him either,” Cathy muttered.
“Exactly my… wait, what’d you say?”
Cathy sighed. “Laz, just put Clarence back on will you?”
“Fine, you obviously don’t want to talk to me,” Laz shrugged and handed Clarence the phone.
Just then Chris approached Laz, “Any luck on finding Ryan?” he asked.
“Nope,” Laz shook his head. “I wonder where he is?”

“Where the heck are we anyways?” Ryan asked.
Jason Scorn simply kept walking and didn’t answer.
Ryan shrugged. “I love how talkative this guy is.”
“I dunno, I think he’s kinda cute,” Emmy said, softly enough so Jason couldn’t hear.
“Oh please, that’s just stupid,” Ryan rolled his eyes. “I mean he’s a killing machine.”
“So are you,” Emmy reminded him.
Ryan nodded. “That’s true but I’m not cute.”
Emmy nudged him. “Fine, he’s hot then.”
“That’s better,” Ryan laughed, but suddenly he halted. Ahead of them Jason dug into a crouch as well.
“What is it?” Emmy whispered, following their example.
“Helicopter,” Ryan hissed. “Get into the brush!” They all sprang for the trees and amongst the branches, hoping that the helicopter would pass, but it didn’t appear as if they would have such luck. The helicopter started to slowly descend towards their position, heading for a small clearing a few hundred yards away.
“It’s landing,” Jason said softly.
“Well I’m glad you’re here to tell us that!” Ryan snapped. “What’s next? The emperor is trying to kill us?”
“Hey! Who saved your butt back there at the terrorist’s little hideout, huh?” Jason broke his usual code of silence.
“I could have escaped without your help,” Ryan said defiantly.
“Yeah right, how?”
“I don’t know I didn’t have to! I would have thought of something though.”
“Shhh!” Emmy hushed them. “They just landed.”
A pair of boots stepped out from the helicopter, followed by another. Then the pilot himself stepped out. All three of the figures were fully decked out in combat suits and fully camouflaged. That didn’t keep Ryan from recognizing them, however.
“I know who that is!” Ryan exclaimed. “It’s Tim, and Jordan, and Sarah.”
“Who?” Jason asked.
“Friends of ours, come on,” Ryan waved him to follow and approached the helicopter.
The instant he stepped within sight, all three figures whirled around and trained their weapons on him.
“Relax guys, its me,” Ryan held up his hands and motioned for Jason and Emmy to do the same. Tim, Sarah, and Jordan did not lower their weapons, however.
“Guys, its me, come on,” Ryan chuckled nervously.
Sarah reached for her radio carefully and clicked on the transmission. “We have the fugitives in sight now, sir, awaiting your orders.”
“Oh no,” Ryan shook his head in disbelief.
Jason Scorn scowled at him. “Some friends of yours.”
“These aren’t our friends,” Ryan groaned. “We’ve been tricked.”



to be continued...