Book Marksman: Chapter 4: Recruited

I decided to feature a random MC-War player in this chapter as a character. I will probably do more random features. Comment below if you want in!


Next installment in the Marksman series.

Soulless has returned back to his team's cave they had been using as a base, but finds it empty and filled with bodies. His teammates are nowhere to be found.

Evil, Dark, Rock, and the twins have relocated their base, but a U.S. Special Forces Blackhawk arrives nearby, dropping unidentified soldiers.

Marksman: Chapter 4: Recruitment.

Soulless clicked on his radio. “Omega 2-1 to 2-3, over."

He was greeted by only silence.

His heartbeat increased. “Omega 2-3, please respond."

Still silence.

Soulless stared down the tunnel leading to their cave. There was no light, and no movement. He grabbed his AR-15 and activated the tactical light, and rolled the rifle over to the canted red dot sight. He then proceeded down the tunnel.

---------------

Dark and Evil were hunched around their trusty laptop. Titanium sat with his back against the cave wall, field stripping his new M4. Platinum was constructing a C4 charge. If he messed up, they could all go up in a large plume of smoke. Rock was watching interestedly.

Evil rubbed his eyes and checked the screen again. “I'm getting nothing other than radio chatter about a one man raid on the compound of that military corp. No signs of Soulless."

Dark sighed and went back to organizing ammunition. Once he finished that, he picked up a Stinger launcher and began calibrating it.

Platinum connected two wires together and the remote on the charge glowed red. He disconnected them and set the bomb with the other three he had made. He leaned his chair back and relaxed. Rock drew his P226 and dropped the magazine, cocking the hammer and starting to dry fire the pistol.

There was silence, aside from the scraping of the cleaning rod along the bore of Titanium's M4 barrel, and the clicking of Rock's P226. Titanium stuck some grease into the receiver of the rifle and then locked the upper and lower together.

That was when they heard the helicopter.

Evil glanced at his screen. “What the. . .chopper. Go! Now!"

Dark grabbed the launcher he had been calibrating and ran for the door. Evil grabbed his M4 which was leaning against the table. Rock grabbed his new AR-15 rifle, borrowed from Soulless' spare few, and followed them out. Titanium and Platinum took up the rear, M4s ready.

Dark made it out of the cave first, and dropped to one knee. He raised the Stinger and got a lock on the helicopter before he noted the U.S. Special Forces insigna painted on the side and paused.

Evil has obviously noticed it too. “Hold fire!" He said into the radio. “Still got that target lock?" He muttered to Dark, who nodded. “Keep it."

“Yessir." Dark murmured. This might be a ploy by ther enemies. You could never die being too careful.

A rope snaked out the side of the Blackhawk and a soldier in black fatigues and combat gear slid down, grabbing an UMP 45 submachinegun complete with an acog scope, canted iron sights, foregrip and suppressor hanging from a sling and dropping to a knee and scanning. He was followed by three more identical soldiers. One stood and spoke into a radio mounted on his shoulder. “Drop zone is clear sir."

A figure clad in the same clothing, minus a helmet, grabbed the line and slid down, landing firmly on his feet. The line was cut from above and the helicopter dipped to the left and began to move away, the sound of its engine fading.

“You must be Evil." The man who had dropped last said, clasping his hands behind his back. Dark noted the lieutenants insignia on his shoulders, and a Smith & Wesson .357 compact revolver in a holster on his right breast. The four guards behind the lieutenant stood in a relaxed pose, UMP 45's held in a two handed relaxed posture.

“I am." Evil said cautiously. He verified that the lieutenant wore a U.S flag under his lieutenants markings, which he did. “And who might you be?"

“That my friend," the lieutenant said grimly, “is strictly classified, and will come on a need to know basis."

Titanium chuckled next to Dark, who had stood and held the Stinger over one shoulder. “You betcha it's need to know. This stuff always is these days."

Dark nodded almost imperceptibly.

“I'm with a very, very special division of the Special Forces. I came to do a little check in, hands-on style."

Evil nodded. “Of course. Always wanting to know how the boys are doing." If the lieutenant hadn't been wearing black gear and Evil green and tan digital camouflage, they might have been teammates.

The lieutenant turned to face the other four. “And you, with the Stinger you pointed at my boys, must be Dark." He chuckled. “You gave us quite a scare there. I thought you were going to blow us out of the sky for a moment."

He shook Dark's hand, and they nodded at each other. The lieutenant then turned to Titanium and Platinum. “Twins eh? Who's who?"

“Platinum."

“Titanium."

The lieutenant nodded. “Platinum, you're an explosives specialist, correct?" When Platinum nodded and raised an eyebrow, he said, “Oh, I know all about Omega team here. I've read your files. Everything from your background history to your real names. Not these wonderful nicknames Special Forces is so fond of."

He turned to Titanium. “Weapons specialist, eh Titanium? Always a good thing to have knowledge of."

The lieutenant turned. "And yes, you, the unofficial member of Omega team. Rock, right?"

“That's me." Rock replied, moving to salute. The lieutenant raised his hand before Rock could. "Please, don't. I prefer handshakes."

Rock shook his hand. “You crashed with these two in a C-130, correct?" The lieutenant inquired.

“Yes." Rock said skeptically. “I'm guessing you know all about that business?"

“Of course." The lieutenant said. “Now, if memory and my counting skills are correct, I beleive you're missing one member, who just so happens to be the one person I want to talk to. Your sniper and mission commander."

The lieutenant turned and clasped his hands behind his back. “So. Would anybody mind telling me where Soulless is?"

---------------

Soulless waited for the guard to pass by him before stepping out from behind the rock face, his combat knife already coming up. The blade landed squarely in the side of the soldier's neck, his hand coming up to feel the blade. Soulless raised his Glock 17 in his right hand and fired two shots into the other enemy, dropping him.

Soulless withdrew the knife, wiping it on the fatigues of the soldier he'd stabbed. He checked that both of the enemies were dead, and stepped out into the open in a crouch, AR-15 raised.

His heart stopped when he saw the group of thirty.

Instantly, he stepped back into his hideaway. He wanted to stay there forever from the fear he felt. Thirty enemies. There was no way he could take them all on without being spotted.

“Well, I never found my teammates anyways." Soulless muttered. “Better to go down fighting than live while they died."

He stepped around the corner, raising his AR-15, just as the first grenade was fired into the group's midst.

--------------

“So you're with some special division of Special Forces, correct?" Evil said, relaxing in his chair.

“That's correct." The lieutenant, who still did not identify himself, said calmly. “And now that we're away from the prying ears of spies, satellites, and drones, I think it's safe to say that I'm here for a little more than a welfare check."

“Oh? What a surprise." Evil said sarcastically. Special Forces lieutenants didn't come out with an unidentified team and drop in randomly for a ‘welfare check.' And the man had wanted to speak to Soulless, which triggered his alarm bells.

“Yes, surprising I suppose." The lieutenant said, also sheathed with sarcasm. “The thing is, having read your files, Omega team is one of the best Special Forces teams we have avaliable here. Even better than the SEAL teams."

“High praise from one so highly distinguished as yourself." Evil said carefully. Usually, he disliked officers, who gave orders and took none. They rarely had to place themselves in danger to do their job, instead using others.

But there was something about this lieutenant. He was very calm and collected, and wasn't all orderly business. He seemed friendly, and he seemed to genuinely care about his men. Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken ths time to read up on Omega team.

“Oh, it's nothing. I actually have some serious business to conduct with Soulless. Not that I wouldn't tell you about it of course. I trust all of our operators implicitly."

Titanium, Platinum, and Rock were having a stare down with the black-clad operators. Rock had set the AR-15 down and was sitting in a chair, cleaning his Sig Sauer P226. The slide was in his hand, a rag dipped in oil in the other. He kept his eyes on the four unknown soldiers. Titanium and Platinum remained standing, hands on their M4s. The unknown operators, on the other hand, all stood with their UMP 45's, bristling with attachments, in a relaxed two hand grip.

“If you trust us so implicitly, as you put it," Evil said, leaning forward to place his hands on the table. “why don't you tell us what this business is?"

The lieutenant chuckled. “You don't have the security clearance to be told." Then he leaned in a little closer. “But I'll tell you anyway. We have followed all of our Special Forces teams closely over the years. Everything from small operations to big jobs. From the team's history to their specializations."

He clasped his hands. “We have had an interest in Omega team for a while. We know that Evil and Soulless are the two founders of the team, but in one of the more recent missions you lost your two other teammates."

Evil thought back to that mission bitterly. They had been deployed onto a cargo ship to seize weapons, but it ended in a firefight. “I remember."

“Well, we came to extend an invite into our small division of select teams to run black ops. If you accept, your current mission will be scrubbed, and you will be extracted. Another team can continue where you left off."

“And if we refuse?" Dark asked.

“We leave, and you carry on with your mission. And, before you make your decision," the lieutenant said pointedly. “we were never here. Clear?"

“Crystal." Muttered Evil.

“Feel free to deliberate." The lieutenant stood. One of the soldiers facing Rock, Titanium, and Platinum cocked his head and then walked over to the lieutenant. “Sir, we have reports of gunfire twelve miles northwest of our current position. One of our recon teams has engaged a group of mercenaries."

“Interesting." The lieutenant said.

----------------

Soulless squeezed rounds into the mercenaries but had no luck. Their tough Kevlar was blocking his rounds. One spotted him and raised their G36 rifle, firing a burst. He ducked down and pulled a smoke grenade he had picked up from an ammunition crate back in the cave. Pulling the pin, he tossed it up and over the rock. There was only the sound of G36 rifles singing their deadly song, interspersed by-

Was that the sound of M4 rifles?

Instantly, Soulless was given new hope. The smoke grenade began to hiss, and he dashed out from behind the rock and slid down a hill, swerving to avoid a tree. When he hit the bottom, he spotted where the source of the M4 fire was coming from. Six soldiers had taken cover behind various objects on the side of the mountain to fire uphill at the group of mercenaries. Their M4A1 rifles pounding away. They wore gear and fatigues similar to Soulless', but black, with full face helmets.

To reach the group, Soulless would have to cross an open expanse of ground, exposed to the deadly 5.56x45mm rounds the G36 rifles fired.

Soulless took a deep breath and dashed. Almost immediately, bullets began to split the air around him. He ducked and weaved, trying to make himself a tougher target. He soon reached the position of the soldiers, sliding into it over the last six feet. One of the soldiers pulled a Glock 19 with a mounted red dot sight and pointed it at Soulless, who felt his heart skip a beat staring down the barrel of a handgun.

“Woah, woah! Friendly! U.S Special Forces!" Soulless yelled.

The soldier didn't move. Then he pulled the trigger.

Soulless shut his eyes. . .

. . .and realized he was still alive.

He glanced behind him, and noted one of the black armored mercenaries had snuck around behind Soulless, and now had a neat hole in his visor. The mercenary pitched over dead, and Soulless turned to look at the strange soldier, who nodded, holstering the Glock and began firing his M4 again. Soulless, still spooked, pulled his AR-15 up to his shoulder and stared down the scope, balancing the rifle on the rock.

He lined the crosshairs up with one enemy and squeezed the trigger. The bullet caught the enemy in the chest, but they began to stand up. He squeezed two more shots off, ensuring he didn't get back up. Transitioning targets, he lined the sights up with the head of one enemy, who was reloading their G36. He fired, the bullet passing clean through their helmet.

Next to Soulless, one soldier took a bullet through the head. He pitched backwards, and lay still. Soulless ducked back down and glanced at him grimly. The soldier who had drawn the Glock on Soulless scooted over closer to him, swiftly loading a grenade into the launcher mounted under the barrel. Aiming, he fired the grenade straight into the chest of an enemy. The result was too violent to describe. The soldiers around the poor merc that took the grenade full on were scattered by the blast. The soldier next to Soulless finished reloading and raised the rifle, aimed, and fired a burst into an enemy who was getting onto his feet. The explosion had shredded the merc's Kevlar vest, and the bullets punched straight through the remaining material.

Soulless transitioned his crosshairs to another enemy, who was readying a grenade. He pulled the trigger five times in quick succession, dropping the grenade. It detonated, taking the last mercs around him out.

There was silence, except for the sounds of the mountain. The soldier near Soulless removed his helmet, clipping it to his belt as he walked up the hill towards the bodies. Without even looking as he passed a wounded merc, he drew his Glock 19 and put a round through their head. He repeated this process with two more soldiers. Soulless looked around, and noted that the other four remaining soldiers were doing the same.

The soldier turned and looked at Soulless. “Just cleaning up. Leaving as little evidence behind as possible."

Soulless just nodded. The soldier extended a hand. “I'm Lekosa. Leko for short."

Soulless accepted the offered hand. “Soulless. Special Forces, Echo division, Omega team."

Leko laughed. “Big shot, eh? I'm Special Forces too. Spectre division, Wraith team."

“Never heard of Spectre division, or Wraith team." Soulless commented.

“There's lots of stuff you've never heard of." Leko muttered. “None of it pretty, either."

Soulless gestured to the dead Special Forces soldier, still laying where he fell. “Friend of yours?"

“Yeah. He won't get recognized either. Part of running black ops."

Soulless was now curious. What was an unknown black ops team doing way out here in Afghanistan? This wasn't a small event. It was big.

“We have a Blackhawk coming to pick us up. Be ready to move." Leko said, dropping the magazine of his Glock 19 and ramming a new one home. Soulless pulled his Glock 17 out and started removing the suppressor. Leko checked the red dot on his pistol, then did checks on his M4. Soulless removed the suppressor on his AR and put the compensator on. Then he checked his ammunition. Two fourty round magazines for the AR, three seventeen round magazines for the Glock. He had enough.

Leko looked at the AR-15 and raised an eyebrow. “Police weapon. Why?"

Soulless grinned. “This isn't your standard police gun. Accurate up to five hundred yards. Vortex competition grade scope, custom firing system, slanted foregrip, tactical light with strobe and flood functions, infrared laser, interchangeable compensator and suppressor, canted red dot sight. Also, it's smaller than an M4, so it can be used in tighter situations."

Leko nodded. “Why not a regular M4?"

“I'm a sniper. Hit where it hurts with as few shots as possible for maximum damage."

“Cool." Leko checked his watch. “Blackhawk should be here soon."

One of the soldiers came over and propped up the body of the dead soldier, and right on cue, the Blackhawk could be heard. It was moving fast, making a beeline for their position.

It began to settle down, and the first two soldiers carrying their fallen comrade got in first. Soulless and Leko crouched, rifles ready. The other two soldiers boarded, then Soulless got in, and turned to cover Leko as he got on.

That was when Leko was shot.

Leko's back exploded in red, and he pitched over onto his side, on the floor of the Blackhawk, and then rolled off onto the ground. Soulless was already raising his rifle, having spotted the soldier lying on the ground with the pistol. He pulled the trigger tree times in rapid succession, placing all three rounds in the center of the wounded merc's chest. His AR hanging across his chest, he jumped up and grabbed Leko, who was still conscious, his teeth gritted in pain. “Damn. That hurt."

“I'll bet." Said Soulless, helping Leko up into the Blackhawk. He settled him down against the wall and looked up at one of the other soldiers. “Is anyone here a medic? He needs help badly."

The soldier shook his head, grabbing the first-aid kit off the wall. “I'll do my best."

Leko, hand held over his left shoulder, glanced up to the pilot. “Get us to the RV. We can figure out what to do from there."

Soulless looked at the pilot, who nodded and turned the helicopter, then to Leko. “RV point?"

Leko grimaced. “My team found yours. The RV point is their new base. We're headed there."

Soulless grinned. “I can see my team again. About time."

Leko looked at him quizzically as his teammate put a shot of morphine into him and unpackaged a gauze roll. “About time?"

“I've been on an op for a while. Snuck into a base the hard way, exited with a really big bang that took out a whole lot of bad guys."

Leko's teammate finished wrapping gauze around his shoulder, and Leko nodded his thanks.

Soulless relaxed, balancing his AR-15 between his knees as he sat with his back against the wall of the Blackhawk.

Now all he could do is wait.

---------------

Evil sat watching Platinum make his C4 charges. The lieutenant stood facing a wall, practicing reloads with his .357 revolver with an empty moon clip. Draw, pull trigger, open cylinder, drop clip, drop fresh one in, close cylinder, raise, pull trigger.

The computer beeped next to Evil. He checked it, and muttered, “What the hell is it with these unmarked Blackhawks. Some new trend?"

“Problem?" The lieutenant asked.

“Another unmarked Blackhawk." He said, grabbing his M4. All of the men in the room grabbed their assorted weapons and made way for the tunnel out of the cave.

Evil stepped out into the daylight and looked up at the Blackhawk descending. It hovered, and then set down, it's motor slowing.

First off was Soulless, his left shoulder supporting a soldier identical to the lieutenant's men. The soldier had gauze wrapped around his left shoulder. Platinum stepped forward to take him off Soulless, who waved him away. He carried the wounded man into the cave.
The lieutenant stopped one of the soldiers off the helicopter and pointed at the man Soulless was helping inside. The soldier removed his helmet and whispered something into the lieutenants ear. He nodded, and the soldier walked away.

Soulless came back out and nudged Evil. “How you doing?"

Evil grinned. “Just fine. Had to have these guys pull your butt out of the fire, eh?"

“Not exactly, but whatever helps you sleep at night."

Platinum had gone inside to tend to Leko. Titanium clapped a hand on Soulless shoulder, and Dark wrapped him in a bear hug.

The soldiers were unloading gear off of the Blackhawk. Everyone pitched in, moving all sorts of different gear. Soulless picked up one case and weighed it in his hands.

Leko came out from the cave, and the lieutenant gestured him over.

---------------

Soulless set the case down and glanced over at the group of supposed black ops soldiers. He hoped they wouldn't mind him having a look at some of their stuff.

Soulless flipped up the catches on the case and lifted the lid.

Inside, set into foam inserts in the case, was a Winchester .338 Lapua Modular Sniper Rifle. The rifle was brand new, the bipod folded up against the barrel. The Leupold 8x16 scope glistening and scratch free, the bolt brand new, lubricated, and undamaged.

It was a true marksman's weapon.

“Enjoying checking out our toys, eh?"

Soulless stood up abruptly. He kept his eyes facing downward at his feet. Leko stepped around to stand in front of Soulless, shaking his head with a smile.

“It's all right Soulless. No harm done. Everybody has cool toys someone else wants. It's natural."

“Sorry." Soulless replied.

“No worries. I'd like for you to meet my CO. He's a lieutenant, but-"

“My name comes on a need to know basis." The soldier stepped out to stand next to Leko. He wore gear identical in every way except for the lieutenant's insignia, and a .357 magnum revolver holstered across his chest. “You must be Soulless, the sniper I hear so much about these days." He extended a hand.

Soulless took it. “You've heard of me, sir?"

“Yes indeed. I know quite a bit about you from your Special Forces file." The lieutenant placed a hand on Soulless' shoulder. “I really appreciate what you did for Lekosa back there when he was wounded. I don't know what on earth I would do without him. Now, come, we have something to discuss."

End of chapter 4

Thanks for reading guys! Tags below;
@rocktomb34
@Lekosa1 - just a random feature.
@TheTitaniumTitan
@ThePlatinumTitan
@DarkTitan_
@MR_EVIL_OVERLORD

 

What part of random feature do you not understand.

There's still that mysterious lieutenant. . .hue.